14 Chapter 13

Markus was relaxing with the crew watching Sanji flirt (badly) with Nami. As he was, the head chef, Zeff, butted in and began to berate Sanji, "It's a good chance, go be a pirate. I don't need a guy like you in my restaurant."

Zeff was an older looking man who's most outstanding features were his crazy tall chefs hat, long braided mustache, and a peg leg. Sanji glared at Zeff while taking a drag off of his cigarette, "I'm the assistant head chef, what do you mean I'm not needed!?"

Zeff just crossed his arms over his chest, "You cause too much trouble for the guests. If they happen to be women you drool all over them. You also can't cook a meal to save your life. You're just unnecessary and holding the restaurant back! Even the other cooks can't stand you. So whether you become a pirate or something else, it's just better for you to get the hell out of my shop!"

Markus watched the events unfold as the argument between Sanji and Zeff escalated a bit. He knew exactly what Zeff was doing and he approved. Once Sanji was on board their food would be excellent and he could even pick up a few tips on cooking to increase his skill. He was looking forward to seeing what kinds of buffs he could get from food.

The fight between Zeff and Sanji got heated enough for Zeff the flip Sanji over and slam him into a table. After they finished their fight, the ever clueless Luffy turned to Sanji, "Haha! He gave you permission! Now you can be a pirate!"

Sanji just yelled at Luffy, "Hell no!"

Immediately after, Sanji began flirting with Nami, giving her a fruit salad and a glass of wine to 'apologize' for the ruckus he and Zeff caused. Naturally, Nami put on her most polite girlish demeanor and gave her thanks. She put on a 'weak' and 'girly' poor me look as she spoke to Sanji, "By the way, mister cook, the food here is a tad expensive for me..."

Sanji, totally falling for her 'soft and weak' look said, "Then it shall be free for you, miss!"

His eyes turned to hearts as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him, "Thank you so much!"

Sanji looked like he was in heaven. But once she let him go he turned to the three men at the table, "You're paying though!"

Luffy sat around sipping tea as Sanji walked away, "Ah, this tea is great."

A foot came out of nowhere and slammed into Luffy's head, "Hey errand-boy! What the hell are you just sitting around for?!" Sanji grabbed Luffy and dragged him away, "Bring hot towels out to the customers when they arrive!"

For the next two days, the crew hung around Baratie. They didn't have much else to do while Luffy was working. They couldn't afford to eat at Baratie every day so Markus got to do a fair bit of cooking. He also spent the majority of his time 'meditating', at least as far as the rest of the crew was concerned. In reality, he was inside of his Image Training growing stronger by the day. His real-world training would need to wait until they picked up some weights. Even Zoro wasn't able to workout at the moment. If he didn't have the Image Training skill he would be stagnant for the last two days.

During his Image Training, he decided to try fighting all the members of the crew, including the future member Sanji. The fights against most of them were intense. He had to quit against Luffy before he got killed and he only barely managed to beat Zoro and Sanji. Each of those fights ended up with him beaten and bloody requiring a break to recover his lost hit points. Zoro, seeing Markus covered in cuts and bruises had walked over and asked, "What the hell happened to you?!"

Markus just waved a hand to calm Zoro down, "Ever heard of image training?"

Zoro shook his head so Markus explained the concept to him, it couldn't hurt, right? "It's a technique my old man taught me. It's a meditation technique where you conjure up images of people and fight them in your mind. If you get good enough at it, it will help you refine your skills and can even become so realistic that the injuries you receive fighting your opponent become real. True masters can even go so far that if they're not careful they could even be killed by their imagined enemy. However, as long as you're careful you can gain a lot of experience in a short amount of time."

Markus had decided that anytime he talked about the system or something it gave or taught him he would refer to it as his 'old man'. A nice universal excuse. Zoro showed interest in the technique, why wouldn't he? A way to get experience while sitting around? Hell yeah! So, Markus explained the technique to him to the best of his ability. He used vague terms and simple ideas to convey the concept to Zoro. Markus knew Zoro liked to sleep but he wasn't sure if Zoro could actually meditate. Still, Zoro went to give it a try. He fell asleep within two minutes.

During the two days of not much happening, Markus gained enough experience to level up to level 23 and got himself another 60 attribute points to spend. He pushed his Strength and Agility up to 100 with a few points and put the rest into his Spirit. Along with experience and levels, he gained a fair bit of loot. His stock of health potions rose to 25 while his willpower potions rose to 37. Even his stock of Belly's increased, though he spent a little over fifty thousand to get a new sword it still left him with nearly four hundred thousand. He was extremely happy with his gains.

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Name: Silvers D. Markus

Age: 16

Class: Noob Pirate

Level: 23

Exp: 680,833/720,000

Hit Points: 710/710 (+39/minute)

Willpower: 850/850 (+44.2/minute)

Strength (STR): 100

Vitality (VIT): 71

Agility (AGI): 100

Spirit (SPT): 85

Wisdom (WIS): 43

Charisma (CHA): 35

Luck (LCK): 34

Attribute Points: 0

Belly: 398,450

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He was sick of beating the shit out of Buggy, Kuro, and their minions. He'd even managed to take on half a dozen Kuro's at once and come out without a scratch thanks to his increasing agility and the increasing level of his footwork. At level fifteen he could now move at 150% of his usual speed for 15 seconds. His Observation Haki also increased in rank letting him use it more effectively and at greater ranges. At level 25 he could passively use it out to 25 feet, or 250 feet if he used it actively. All of his skills saw great improvement after two days of non-stop grinding. And why was he doing all of this? In preparation for the upcoming fights! He knew two big ones were on the horizon and he wanted to be prepared for them.

Sadly, he still couldn't use the other two Haki skill books inside of his inventory. He sat down for a while and thought about what might be required. Conquerors Haki was an inborn talent in people so there was no clue about what the requirements might be, he might not even be able to learn it. Though he doubted that. It would be pointless for the system to give him something he couldn't use. When it came to Armament Haki he had somewhat of an idea. In One Piece lore Armament Haki was the hardening of a person's will. His best guess was that he needed a certain amount of Strength and Spirit to learn it. He just had no idea about the specific numbers.

In that way, two days passed and the incident Markus was waiting for occurred. A massive ship, even bigger than the Baratie, sailed up to the restaurant. It was in a complete shambles. No section of the ship looked to be free of damage. The sails were practically rags, the figurehead was broken in half, and it almost seemed miraculous that the ship could still float. Markus watched and listened as people on the Baratie started screaming in fear at the sight of the ship, it was Don Krieg's flagship.

The four cowards on the Going Merry began to panic while Zoro and Markus just looked at the wrecked ship with indifference. From where they were standing on the ship, the entire crew could vaguely hear shouts coming from inside the Baratie. Everyone except Markus. Thanks to the massive 250-foot range of his active Observation Haki, he could not only hear the conversations happening inside of the Baratie clearly, but he could also see them. He watched as Gin, a pirate Sanji fed a few days ago, brought Don Krieg and begged for food. No one wanted to give him any but Sanji gave him some food. He paid for it once Krieg finished eating and gave Sanji a clothesline as thanks.

The others stood around not knowing what was happening inside of the Baratie. Markus listened to the arguments between Sanji and the rest of the cooks as he was determined to feed the one hundred starving men on Krieg's ship. It all culminated in one of the cooks pulling out a cannon and shooting Krieg right out of the restaurant. Moments later a barrage of gunfire could be heard. The sounds were loud enough for everyone to hear. Zoro looked indifferent, their captain was bulletproof so nothing happening in there could harm him so far.

Still, Usopp, Zoro, and Markus all left the Going Merry and made their way onto the Baratie. They found a table to sit down and relax while they watched the festivities. They were just in time to hear Don Krieg say, "Once I get Zeff's log I will reassemble my fleet and find the One Piece!"

Luffy couldn't let that pass and jumped in, "I will be the one to become the Pirate King and find the One Piece!"

The cooks panicked, one even shouted out, "Take it back kid or you'll be killed!"

Luffy just smiled and stood firm, "I'm not standing down! Not on this!"

Krieg looked down at Luffy, "What did you say you little brat? I'll be nice and let that comment slide for now..."

Luffy just kept smiling while he crossed his arms over his chest, "You don't need to let it slide, I was only stating the truth."

"This ain't a game, kid."

Luffy nodded, "I know."

"Did you hear that just now? Even Don Krieg couldn't make it in the Grand Line. I won't say anything bad so let's just give up on going to that place."

Zoro turned to Usopp, "Just shut up."

Luffy looked over at the table where Markus, Zoro, and Usopp were sitting. Usopp spoke first, "You planning to fight Luffy?"

Zoro added, "Need a hand?"

Markus finished with, "Please say yes, the last few days have been boring as hell."

"Oh, hey you three. Nah, you can just stay sitting down."

Krieg watched for a moment before he started laughing. He threw his head back and laughed to his heart's content before mocking Luffy, "Those are your crewmates? A rather small bunch aren't they?" His attitude changed as he was suddenly furious, "Don't joke with me you little punk! Even with fifty ships and five thousand men we were utterly decimated by that devilish sea in a week!"

The crowd of cooks had various reactions of shock while Usopp started panicking and addressed Markus, "Did you hear that? Fifty ships lost in a week!"

Markus just grinned and looked at Zoro, "Sounds interesting right?"

Zoro nodded in agreement, he felt excited at the idea of the dangerous Grand Line. Krieg looked at Luffy in annoyance, "I hate ignorant braggarts the most. Keep talking like that when I get back here and I'll kill you."

Krieg grabbed a bag of food that Zeff had brought out before Markus and the others arrived and left Baratie to deliver it to his crew. Markus didn't pay too much attention to the conversation going on around him. Just enough to hear that they all planned to fight to protect the Baratie from Krieg and his men. Luffy came over and sat on the table next to the rest of his crew. He pointed at Sanji, "What do you think of him? Pretty good right?"

Usopp made a cowardly remark while Zoro just dismissed any threat recently beaten and starving pirates might have. Markus lifted his right fist and curled his fingers until his knuckles cracked while chuckling, "Looks like there will be a good fight soon."

Luffy agreed with Markus, "That's right. If he is strong we would eventually butt heads anyway!"

Luffy suddenly remembered something, "That's right Gin!" He called out to a wounded pirate sitting on the ground near the door where Krieg left from, "You said you didn't know anything about the Grand Line but didn't you go there?"

Gin cowered, covering his head with his hands as he spoke in a defeated tone, "My not knowing is the truth. Even now I can't tell if those seven days in the Grand Line were real or a nightmare. He just appeared... For one man to defeat all fifty of our ships, what else can that be but a nightmare?!"

Everyone still inside of Baratie was shocked, except Markus. He knew the Grand Line was filled with monsters and that the further into the Grand Line you got, the more monstrous they became. Gin continued to talk, "We had no idea what was going on, at first. Our ships just sank one by one. If it weren't for that storm whisking us away, even our main ship would have been destroyed. I don't even know if any of our other ships survived." Gin shuddered, "I don't want to remember that man's hawk-like eyes! Eyes that looked like they could cut you with just a glance."

Markus looked at Zoro and smiled when he saw the look of surprised recognition on his face. There were remarks of disbelief from the crowd. Zeff chimed in, "I can't know for certain but the fact that he sunk your entire fleet is proof enough that it was the Hawk-Eyed man."

Usopp asked, "Who's that?"

Luffy shrugged his shoulders, "No idea."

Zoro spoke with conviction, "He's the man I'm looking for."

The conversation continued with everyone chatting. Things were pretty peaceful while everyone waited for Krieg to return. Markus knew that Dracule "Hawk-Eyes" Mihawk was Zoro's goal. At the moment though, Zoro didn't stand a chance at all. Hell, Markus knew that even with his current level, skills, and attributes, he didn't stand even a remote chance in hell. He was looking forward to seeing Mihawk's level though. He wouldn't even risk fighting Mihawk in his Image Training.

There was some fatalistic chatting going on until they all heard the sounds of the pirates from Don Krieg's ship coming. Everyone looked out at Krieg's ship as the pirates started to leap off to try and take over the Baratie. As they did their ship suddenly split in half with a clean cut. Everyone was shocked, even Markus. Seeing such a large ship sliced in half on a TV show was one thing but seeing it in person was crazy. It was far beyond human and it was terrifying. Markus felt a shiver run down his spine as he watched.

The huge galleon split again as it was sliced into three pieces. Everyone ran outside as they became worried about the Going Merry. It had been nearby and could have been sliced. Markus joined them and saw Johnny and Yosaku swimming in the water. He listened to the conversation as they explained that Nami stole the ship and all the treasure inside of it. Markus turned away from them and looked in one particular direction. There, sitting on a small boat that looked like a coffin, was the strongest swordsman in the world.

Before he could get a good look at him, Luffy got his attention, "Markus, Zoro, Usopp, take Johnny and Yasaku's ship and chase after Nami."

Zoro looked disinterested, "Just let her go. No good will come from chasing that thief."

Usopp didn't agree, "But she took the ship Kaya gave us! That ship is important!"

Luffy stood firm, "I want her to be our navigator! No matter what!"

Zoro sighed, "Fine. Usopp, let's go."

Usopp turned to Luffy, "You're not coming?"

Luffy shook his head, "I still have to work off the damage I did here."

As the three men got ready to board Johnny and Yasaku's boat, shouting caught their attention. Mihawk had become visible to everyone on his little boat. Mihawk was a middle-aged man with a distinctly Spanish look to him. Even his clothes seemed to be Spanish in design. On his back, he carried a massive black sword. Markus turned serious when he saw the man and knew instantly to not provoke him anytime soon.

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Dracule "Hawk-Eyes" Mihawk

Class: Grandmaster Swordsman

Level: 103

Hit Points: 2,880/2,880

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Markus shuddered at the sheer amount of hit points that Mihawk had. Not to mention his crazy level of over one hundred! He didn't even know that levels could go above one hundred. How high could they go? Mihawk was just too strong, no wonder he could toy with Zoro and fight using a knife equal to a paring knife. Zoro watched as one of Krieg's pirates tried to shoot Mihawk only for the bullets' trajectories to be changed with ease. Zoro was drawn to Mihawk like a magnet. Markus watched as Zoro moved closer to him with determination in his eyes. Everyone watched as Zoro moved closer to Mihawk and challenged him to a duel. Markus knew Zoro was doomed to lose. With a level only one-fifth of Mihawk's it wasn't even going to be a fight.

Zoro got ready with his three sword style while Mihawk removed his cross-shaped necklace and pulled one end of to reveal a small knife. Zoro glared at Mihawk for the perceived slight, "What are you planning to do with that?"

Mihawk held the knife out, "I'm different from those idiots who go all out against little rabbits. Though you may be a swordsman of some renown... This is just the East Blue, the weakest of the four seas that are separated by the Grand Line." Mihawk looked a little annoyed as he said, "Unfortunately, I do not have a smaller blade than this at the moment."

Zoro growled, "There's a limit to how much you can underestimate me. Don't regret it when you die!"

He charged toward Mihawk and brought his swords to bear, "Oni Giri!"

He slashed out with his three swords yet his attack was easily stopped with just the tip of Mihawk's little knife. He'd caught Zoro's attack at the moment when his three blades intersected and stopped all three at once. Mihawk looked unimpressed, "Little frog in his well, let me show you just how big the world really is."

Zoro was shocked but he refused to give up. Zoro attacked Mihawk furiously, his swords nothing but a blur to almost everyone watching. Only three people could see what Zoro was doing, Luffy, Markus, and of course, Mihawk. Despite the onslaught, Mihawk easily parried or blocked every blow Zoro sent his way. It was like watching a man playing with a child. Zoro was clearly frustrated but he didn't give up. He pushed himself to his limit slashing his swords as fast and hard as he could. Seeing this Mihawk spoke, "What burdens you so? What do you still desire at the extent of your strength... weakling?"

Seeing and hearing Mihawk talking to Zoro infuriated Johnny and Yosaku. As they tried to charge over to Zoro, Luffy and Markus grabbed and stopped them in their tracks. Luffy yelled at them, "Don't interfere!"

As Luffy and Markus held the two back, Mihawk sent Zoro tumbling away with a simple blow. Zoro climbed to his feet while panting. He hadn't given up, he refused to give up. He got into a stance with his swords held vertically upside down and behind the third sword in his mouth, "Tora..."

Mihawk thrust with his little dagger as Zoro slashed with his swords, "Gari!"

The two came at each other but Mihawk, inevitably, won. His little knife stabbed into Zoro's chest and blood flowed. Johnny and Yasaku yelled while Luffy grit his teeth and forced himself to keep from moving. Markus watched quietly with his eyes narrowed. Even with his Observation Haki running at full power he couldn't keep track of Mihawk's last move, and that scared him.

Everyone watched as Zoro and Mihawk had a hushed conversation that ended with Mihawk pulling his knife out of Zoro and stepping back to draw the large black sword from his back. The two of them moved into their stances and stared at each other. Johnny and Yasaku were freaking out while it took every bit of Luffy's self-control to hold himself in place. He grit his teeth so tightly that Markus could hear them creaking. He stepped up to Luffy and placed a hand on his shoulder while whispering, "Zoro will not die here."

Luffy said nothing and just watched as the two swordsmen had their final clash. Zoro used his secret move 'Santouryuu Ougi – Sanzen Sekai,' while Mihawk used a 'simple' slash. The two passed each other in a blur but the end result was seen soon enough. Two out of Zoro's three swords broke leaving only the sword he carried in his mouth unbroken. Simultaneously a bloody slash wound appeared on his chest as he fell to one knee. Zoro slowly sheathed his remaining sword in its white sheath before standing up and turning around to face Mihawk with his arms spread. Mihawk looked slightly confused, "What?"

Zoro grinned, almost looking happy yet determined, "A wound on the back, is the shame of a swordsman!"

For the first time, Mihawk smiled, "Splendid!"

Without another word, Mihawk slashed Zoro across his chest. Seeing the sight, Luffy screamed, "ZORO!"