spreading the ripples

As soon as the last message window was dismissed, he feels a slight change operating in his body and mind.

'CS?'

-That should be the last change, it related to your status, give a try.-

'Status'

{[Name: Alexander D. Evans]

[Age: 17]

[Race: sacred Evans]

[STR: 9 --> 26] [VIT: 26 --> 235] [DEX: 10 --> 132] [AGI: 10 --> 153]

[STA: 15 --> 869] [ENG: 36 --> 153] [WIL: 10 --> 26] [MID: 10 --> 263]

[STR: 4,513 Kg] [VIT: 2602 years]

[WIl:[OBS HAKI: 1 --> 300]}

'Does it say Haki? how came I had already learned Haki?'

-During your fight with Kreig crew, due to your state of mind, you had been able to break into the 10th layer of WIL, that had to unlock your observation Haki, like the rest, it separated into data, every 100 point would give you a meter, that why you could 'feel' only until the end of your tails when extended. Even then, your Haki is the most basic. If you want to further it you will need a mix of WIL and MID.

For now, you can only feel the 'breath' of thing, after then it will be the aura of people, their surface thoughts, and future sight. That depends on your MID stat, the WIL would only boost the distance.-

'So for armement haki...'

-Your STR is too lacking for now, but yes, a mix of WIL, STR, and MID. as for the last one, if you ever had it should be a mix of STA, ENG, WIL, and MID-

'Seems right for me. Now that I know what I need, I have to work on my STR before we arrive on Skypiea, Crocodile could be taken with a mix of frost and fire to soak him, but Enel had Mantra, without Aremenment Haki, I won't be able to take him down.'

-You have your weapons.-

'True, but it better to start working on it before the new world.'

-Would you disperse the crew for two years as they have done?-

'To be honest, I don't know, it too far in the future, for now, we will relax a little before entering Grand Line.'

##################################

After finishing his chat with CS and make sure that all their supplies were secured, he gives a last peek at the meat closet. AS they hadn't buy any meats in Logue town, their supplies were starting to dime. E was about to exit it, when a particular spot attracts his gaze, looking at it he saw an oversized purple raspberry, with swirls on the fruit.

"Well, at least we didn't lose Baggy fruit."

He rapidly stores it into a wooden box, before leaving it with the Gomu-Gomu and Sube-Sube, and rejoin the girls at the pool.

It was after a few hours at looking the girls soaks in the pool, or sunbathing topless on the side of it, near the tangerines trees, that Alex decides to prepare the diner. While he wasn't Sanji, he was able to make a decent meal nutritious enough to feed their large appetite.

Wanting to go for grillade, he jumps in the sea from the stern, after leaving a pre-made ladder and taking a large net taken from the marine, resized for smaller meshes.

Looking through the goggle lens, he was astonished by the amount of wildlife exiting the current. He was already knowing that, as the four seas rejoin, they should be quite the amount of fishes taken and send in the Grand Line, but it was still an astonishing scene.

Swimming near the shore of the lighthouse, a multitude of crustacean and shellfish were clinging on the walls. Taking a woven basket and a normal knife out of his storage, he starts to harvest a large number of easy targets.

Thanks to his improved constitution, he was able to hold his breath sufficiently long enough to gather a good amount, but he would still need to make another travel. Tying the basket to the ladder, he takes his net and captures a few large specimens, leaving the smaller pass him.

##################################

He was about to return to the surface when a shadow starts to appear underneath his position. Seeing it lengthen and slightly move, he saw Laboon starting to return to the surface, fresh, bleeding gash on his head after his last confrontation with Red Line.

From its sluggish movement, he could guess that it was still under the anaesthetics injected by the old doctor.

The more it came to the surface and the more he realises the ginormous size of the whale. Following it, he climbs the ladder while bringing the fished fishes with him.

"Hubby, did you see something it the water? There is that enormous shadow that didn't stop to growth not too far." Ask Nami a little worried.

"There is an island whale surfacing, better move the ship a little, just in case."

"Hm!" She immediately goes to the steering room to move the ship before the whale break through the surface and send them against the Redline by the moving water.

Moving to the seemingly inhabited lighthouse, he starts to prepare the grill while chopping the fishes and cook the shellfish. Not a minute later, the dark-blue whale slowly pokes it head out of the water, still sending waves to crash against the walls.

##################################

As the four girls rejoin Alex on the island, the sound of grinding metal gears was heard from the whale, looking at it, they look incredulously at a steel door opening from the side of its stomach, a small floating island with a house on, exiting.

On the lawn in front of the house, a tall man with flower-like petal under his bald head, a large lower lip and a beard sprouting and divided into the two sides of his chin. Even with his apparent advanced age, he had still a stocky and muscled body.

At his feet, passed out, was a couple. The girl was sporting long, clear blue hair keep in a ponytail on the top of her head by a large golden ring with some jewels encrusted in, a light green coat with white furred cuff. Under her open coat was a blue top with a deeper blue, swirl pattern. A belt made of disk sporting green half-spherical gem was holding a white short.

The man on her side had short carrot hair, a golden crown on his head and a green suit, white shirt and orange foulard around his neck, with blue shoes. His cheek had? tattooed on.

##################################

After taking down the two morons that were attempting to hunt Laboon from the past month, Crocus wasn't thinking found a ship docked on his lighthouse. From where he stood, four girls were standing, looking at him and the door on Labbon side with surprised faces. Not feeling any threat from them, he docks his small island on the ship side and climbs up, founding another person there.

throwing the passed out moron on the side, he approaches the group. It was only them that he see who they were. The newly pirates of east blue dubbed Evans pirates by the marines, even if he didn't see any flag on. Seen from near, their similar large height was somewhat surprising, but he had seen stranger stuff on Grand Line. Moving to the side, he sees a table dressed for six, while the boy was bringing plates of cooked food.

"Came, we intrude on your house, the least we can do is share a meal."

At least the boy seems friendly, far from the monster they made him seems, but the marines were never the best source of information when they don't manipulate them directly.

"It has been a while since a crew made it. Name's Crocus and the whale behind is Laboon."

##################################

"Nice to meet you, I'm Alex."

"Nami."

"Nojiko."

"Kuina."

"Tashigi."

"Bwoooo!"

The loud song of Laboon woke and startle up the two in a sudden motion.

"Nice to meet you too Laboon!" Say, Alex, laughing lightly, and seemingly making the whale happy.

The weirdo with the orange hair was about to take a bite, before being sent flying with a kick of Alex. After crashing a little further, he screams while holing his bruised cheek.

"What that for! It rude to kick someone face when they were about to eat!"

"They are with you Crocus?" Asked Alex, ignoring him, even if he was already knowing the answer.

"No, those two clowns had been trying to kill Laboon from the past month." Respond to him while smirking at the treatment he receives.

"That whale is precious for our island! We need meat!" Cried back the still downed weirdo.

"Then learn to fish or eat you, friends, since you don't have any shame by hunt the poor Laboon, you surely heartless enough to feed on your friends, no?"

"What?! For what time of barbarian you take us for?!" Scream the man.

"For scrum working for Baroque Works, a group criminal trying to overthrow a peaceful country by scheming against it, and under the order of another scrum called Crocodile, Shishibukai hiding behind his title." Suddenly say Alex, lasting smile, his face turning serious.

His words draw gasps from the two agents, Mr.9 from the busted identity of his boss, and Vivi, that someone was knowing the truth about her country state. Looking in the sky, she saw a shadow circling above them, before plunging on their position, When they became near enough; all could see that it was a sunglass-wearing, yellow with red flowers, aviator cap sporting vulture, with an otter wearing a blue with purple spot onesie and sunglass.

As they attain a certain altitude, the otter starts to slam a clamshell on another, trying to lit gift looking thing' fuse.

Before it was successful, two guns shot resound, and two corpses can crashing down, both headless.

##################################

All head turn to me as I lower my rifle, giving the girls a slight head sign, they nod, before tying them.

"Now that the pest is taking out, let eat before it cools down."

Sitting back, I could see Crocus looking at me and the rifle. Knowing the man, he had surely cached on the fact that I didn't have it before he returns to his meal.

I know they were relatively harmless other than their gift-wrapped bomb, but Crocodile didn't need to know that we will come for him.

Ignoring the yelling weirdo and the pale looking Vivi, I return to my meal, still pondering if we need to wait for the duo of mr.5 and Miss Valentine to came and hunt Vivi down, or directly move to Little garden, after decimating the group of a bounty hunter on whiskey peak.

With any chance, I could use Igaram to send a message back to Crocodile, with us going to Little Garden after whipping out their group, saying that he had followed us with Vivi, after faking their death. If he was already knowing the two identities, and the fact that Mr.3 would be sent to the island for securing the bounty of the two giant, he would surely send them here, to take us, the giants, and the two spies down in a single go. with those four out of the picture, it would only leave Bentham to deal with before, facing the rest of the organization, and take Chopper between the two.

##################################

After thinking about it, Alex decided that it would be better to immediately depart. That way, Igaram or Crocodile wouldn't be alerted of the Unluckies missings. Knocking Mr.9 unconscious, he throws him in a jail in the hold, and bring Vivi in one of the room the woman tower, after making sure that he had locked all the other rooms of the ship, making only the room and kitchen available.

Setting sail toward the island pointed by Vivi Log pose, they enter Grand Line proper.

##################################

"Make sure to always keep an eye on the Log Pose, those seas are known to be a graveward because of it treacherous current and its sudden burst of weather." Say, Alex, while he was keeping Nami company in the steering room.

"What about our guests?" Ask her.

"The woman his Vivi Nefertari, a royalty of the Alabasta Kingdom, a region of the sandy island a little further on our actual road. From the newspapers, she had been missing from a little less than a year, and anyone with half a brain would see the similarity with her. You don't hide your appearance by only doing a ponytail, nor when you are a political figure with such a particular colour of hair."

"How do you think she had been keeping low key until then, then?"

"Their organization is a covert one, and from the reaction of the clown, none had encountered their boss till then, not the normal agent anyway."

"How do you know that it Crocodile the boss?"

"You tell me, the man is a known pirate, even covered by the government, they let him act as he wants. One day he establishes himself in a particular island full of sand when his own Logia his the Suna-Suna no Mi. Out of nowhere, an incident incurring dance powder, an artificial chemical know to make rain on an area at the cost of drying the surrounding clouds of water happen. This oh so great coincidence happens when the man weakness his water, as it would solidify his sand, and then rebellion happens. The country starts to resent the royal family that had been framed, the man establish a casino in oasis with plenty of water, galleon full of weapons crash near the rebels' bases, and you tell me the man had nothing to do with this? I call bull!"

While Alex had shamelessly used his knowledge of the canon, all this was real, as he had read those facts in the newspaper, and everyone with half a brain of caring a little about the situation would have seen it.

"The most disgusting in this story is that the world government should know about this." Say him with a disgusted face.

"What?! How?!" Asked the orangette shocked.

"Simple, they boast to had the strongest information gathering unit active. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that they have spies in the country a the moment we speak."

"Why do they do nothing, then?!"

"Simple, the Nefertari was once of the few families refusing to became Tenryuubito some 800 before. Until now they still live in their original island. The other piece of shit in Marie Geoise still see it as an affront. The situation is perfect for them, by letting Crocodile do as he please, they would have the opportunity to whip the royal family, even if he fails, I sure they will fake something behind the scene, and put the blame on Croco, before sending him to Impel Down, if not downright execute him for keeping silence. Another reason id the secret the royal family have been keeping."

"Secret?"

"Yes, once of the three ancient weapons his rumoured to sleep in the island, either in the desert, of the Sandora river, a large straight canal that should have been used to move the weapon. From the form, it should be a ship type weapon of something similar. The government will want to make it hand on it if it can't make sure that it stays asleep, and they wouldn't mind sacrifice millions of lives do attain their goal."

Unknown to both of them, their conversation had been heard by a certain bluenette. Making the less possible sound, Vivi run back to the room she had been given, before bursting in tears at her powerlessness to face the situation. She had been hoping to spare all lives, but now she understands that no matter what blood will flow, be it the one of criminal and her family by the and of the government, or the one of innocent by the hand of Crocodile.