[126] Kalifa's Choice
[3000 Words]
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In the royal palace of Alabasta, specifically in Ren's room, an interesting scene was unfolding. Leila sat on Ren's lap like a docile cat, while Vivi chatted happily with the blue-haired warlord.
Beside them stood a striking blonde woman with a calm expression, exuding the aura of a professional secretary.
"All the newspapers are talking about you, Captain~," Vivi, the blue-haired princess, looked at Ren with pride. She was amazed by the power Ren had displayed in the recent war. She knew he was strong, but his strength had far exceeded her imagination.
"That's right, brother. There's no doubt you've attracted the attention of some big players." This time, it was Leila who spoke. Coming from another world and knowing the story of One Piece, she naturally understood this world's rules and mysteries better than anyone besides Ren.
Kalifa listened to their conversation with a calm demeanor, but inside, her mind was racing, trying to pick up any critical information to report back to her superiors. It was her job as a spy, after all.
'But this is strange... I don't understand why I haven't reported anything yet...' The blonde secretary was confused. Whenever she attempted to send her routine report to Rob Lucci, she found herself in a peculiar situation. It was as if she had been asleep during that period.
Back to Ren, who was chatting with the girls, he glanced at Kalifa and noticed her abnormality. He thought to himself, 'Impressive mental resilience... even though she's weak and can't escape my control, she's sensed something odd.'
He smirked coldly and gently moved Leila off his lap. Vivi and Leila looked at him in confusion as they watched him approach Kalifa.
"Oh, Kalifa... I know what you're thinking."
Kalifa's heart skipped a beat as she saw Ren standing Infront of her, and hearing his words only made it worse.
The atmosphere in the room grew cold. Leila stared icily at the blonde secretary, naturally knowing who Kalifa was as someone who had watched the original work and understood that Kalifa had no true loyalty to Ren.
Vivi, sensing the shift in the room's mood, looked at Kalifa with concern.
Kalifa tried to remain calm and responded with a composed expression, "What do you mean, Captain—"
"Shhh…" Ren placed a finger on her lips, signaling her to be quiet, making Kalifa's body tremble with tension.
"I know you have no loyalty." He removed his finger and looked at her with a calm expression.
"T-That's not true..." Kalifa's heart raced as she thought to herself, 'He Caught me! It's over!'
She didn't entertain the thought of escape, not for a moment. Let alone the monster standing in front of her, whose power she had witnessed firsthand, she wouldn't even stand a chance against Mikita, Nami, and the rest of the crew.
"Is it really worth it?" Ren sighed and fixed his gaze on Kalifa once more.
"What do you mean, Captain…" Kalifa asked, with terror flooding her heart.
"I mean, is it worth dying for the World Government? I mean Look, they didn't hesitate for a moment to throw you into the lion's den, and you, with all that brainwashing, didn't hesitate to take on this espionage mission. What were you thinking? That I wouldn't notice your intentions? It's Ironic."
With every word that left his mouth, the expression on Kalifa's face grew more conflicted.
As someone raised and trained by the World Government to be their weapon from a young age, she had never considered such questions. Agents like her weren't supposed to think, only obey orders—even if it meant their death.
Kalifa sighed in defeat, realizing there was no escape now. She stopped pretending and said coldly to Ren, "Just kill me."
Ren smiled upon hearing her words, while both Vivi and Leila's expressions shifted.
"Captain Ren…" Vivi spoke, looking at Kalifa with a complex expression. Although Vivi knew Kalifa wasn't loyal, her kind nature had forged a friendship with her. But she wasn't sure if Kalifa had ever considered her a friend.
"Come on, Kalifa, are you really going to throw your life away for the World Government? You're far too young to die like this." Leila, understanding what her brother was trying to do, used her knowledge of Kalifa's character to plant a seed of doubt in her heart.
"You want to die? Really? Alright, then." Ren spoke as he gazed deeply into Kalifa's eyes. Then, in the next moment, Versa transformed into a gun, and Ren held it.
Without hesitation, he pressed the barrel of the gun to her chest, right between the collarbone and the heart, so that Kalifa felt the cold metal pressing against her skin through her clothes. Her body shivered involuntarily.
Kalifa could feel her heart pounding, its beats hammering against the gun. Her body stiffened, her mind racing between fear and the desire to survive. 'Is this it? Is this where I die?' she wondered silently, beads of sweat rolling down her forehead.
Kalifa stood frozen in place, her eyes lost between confusion and fear. Over the years, her life had been heading in one direction—loyalty to the World Government. There was no room for thinking, only orders filled her life. Yet, with every word that left Ren's mouth and the other girls in the room, seeds of doubt began to sprout.
"Is it worth it?"
Kalifa began to think about what she had given to the World Government. Yes, it had provided her with power and status, but it was so low that it was barely worth mentioning... A CP9 agent? What is that? If a Celestial Dragon wanted to make her a slave, she wouldn't survive, not even CP0 agents would, let alone her. So, she wondered deep inside: What was the government truly offering her? Or rather, did they care about her as a person?
"You've served them loyally, and yet they sent you to spy on me as if you were a tool, just a means to an end. Do they truly care what happens to you?" Ren's words struck her harder than she expected.
Inside her mind, thoughts clashed. 'I am Kalifa, a loyal agent of the World Government... but do I really want to die for them?'
"You are strong, smart, and you know your fate isn't tied to them. You deserve a life better than this, not just some pointless end as a disposable tool." Ren continued, though he still didn't lower the gun from her chest.
Then he whispered coldly, "You can join me, live freely, and make your own decisions. I won't be like the government—I value true loyalty, not blind devotion."
Kalifa trembled again, but this time it was different. She felt something inside her starting to break free, a wall she had been building for years was beginning to crack.
'Is this the path I want to follow?' Kalifa asked herself. 'Is it really worth sacrificing everything for a government that didn't hesitate to send me to my death?'
"You are nothing but tools."
She remembered the words her trainer had told her when she was young. Those cold, emotionless words were strange and terrifying to her as a child, but as she grew up, she got used to them, feeling as if that was how things should be.
"Now, Kalifa, decide. Live or die?" Ren's words echoed in her mind like a devil's symphony. She knew that one word would determine her fate at this moment.
"I-I..." Kalifa was terrified. She knew the answer in her heart, but she couldn't say it. It felt like an invisible force was holding her back.
"Loyalty, Kalifa!"
"Loyalty!"
"Loyalty to the World Government!"
"Loyalty!"
"The World Government is everything. You must give everything to the World Government!"
These phrases echoed in her mind. She had heard these lines for so many years, more than she had heard her own name. Slowly and steadily, her mind was washed with them, and her loyalty became blind and absolute to the World Government.
"I... I... W-want..." Kalifa muttered, and small tears began to form in her eyes, as if her head was about to explode.
Ren narrowed his eyes, sensing something strange happening to Kalifa. 'Is this the effect of brainwashing? Or has her subconscious been hypnotized, erasing any thought of betrayal?'
His expression became serious. Without hesitation, he removed the hypnosis technique he had previously applied on her to prevent her from reporting anything to Rob Lucci. He then closed his eyes and focused on her mind.
'So, this is it... The World Government's methods truly run deep!' He thought to himself, realizing what was happening to her. She wasn't hypnotized by an external force, but rather conditioned from a young age for loyalty to the World Government and absolute obedience. Over the years, this brainwashing had taken on a hypnotic-like effect...
Kalifa looked at Ren with teary eyes, her body tense as the barrel of the gun pressed more firmly against her chest. She couldn't escape his piercing gaze. His words were cutting through the walls she had built as an agent of the World Government.
"What do you want?" Ren repeated, his voice deeper and sharper this time. Then, noticing her troubled expression, he added: "Kalifa, follow what your heart truly desires. That suppressed desire, the one you've been denying, is your reality. It's your true thoughts... the thoughts of Kalifa, not the cold agent of CP9."
His words were like two swords; one severing her false loyalty to the government, and the other uncovering her hidden desire to be more than just a tool. She knew what he said was true—that her life as an agent had been nothing but a cage, and now, he was opening the door for her to choose her own fate.
Her tears fell quietly as she felt the deep internal struggle. For years, she had trained to be emotionless, without a personal identity. But now, in front of Ren, she was facing her true self for the first time.
In a trembling voice, she whispered: "I... I want to live."
As soon as Kalifa's shaky words, "I want to live," left her lips, a moment of silence filled the room. Ren lowered the gun from her chest, then looked at her with a smile—one different from his cold one before.
"You've passed the test," he said softly. "Welcome to the crew, Kalifa. Remember, this is just the beginning of your new journey."
He then turned quietly and gestured for Vivi and Leila to leave. "Come with me, Vivi and Leila; let's give her some time to calm down." He said this as if giving Kalifa a moment to process what had just happened.
Vivi, who was watching the scene with a worried expression, hesitated for a moment before following Ren and Leila outside. Before leaving the room, she gave Kalifa a deep look that combined sadness and relief. Vivi always tried to see the good in others, and even now, she hoped Kalifa was sincere in her desire to join them.
Leila, on the other hand, was more reserved. Her gaze was cold and neutral. As they exited the room, she whispered to Ren in a low voice, "Are you sure, brother? She had a deep loyalty to the World Government, and she could be a threat to us."
Ren didn't reply immediately but nodded briefly, as if he understood Leila's concerns perfectly. "Don't worry; I see determination in her eyes."
As for Vivi, her feelings were mixed. She said calmly, "I believe she's sincere in her desire to join us. We should give her a chance... maybe she will find a place among us."
When they closed the door behind them, Kalifa was left alone in the room. She stood by herself, her eyes still slightly tearful, but now she felt the weight lifted off her shoulders. However, she also knew that her journey was far from over, and her decision to live meant a new and completely different beginning from her past.
*purururu...purururu...purururu*
Suddenly, the Den Den Mushi rang on her pocket .There was no doubt who was calling. She picked it up slowly, and as the features of the Den Den Mushi mimicked Rob Lucci's face, the calm and confident voice spoke:
"Kalifa," Lucci began in a cold tone. "What's new? I haven't heard a report from you in a while."
Kalifa looked at the Den Den Mushi with a steady, calm expression, the feelings of weakness and hesitation that had plagued her earlier completely vanished. It was time to prove that she was no longer a CP9 agent, but Kalifa.
"Everything is going well," she replied coldly, as she was accustomed to doing. "There's nothing to worry about."
Lucci was silent for a moment before continuing, "The routine report?"
Kalifa smiled coolly as always and said: "Everything is completely under control. There's nothing to be concerned about; there have been no movements from Black Death since his return from the war."
"Well, just continue working, and don't do anything that would raise his suspicion." Lucci's voice was dry, but he suspected nothing.
She hung up and returned the Den Den Mushi to its place, a sense of power enveloping her. She had never felt this way before; it was as if she were free, like a bird spreading its wings and soaring away into the sky without any worries.
Her decision to join Ren's crew meant she chose to live freely and to be part of a bigger adventure. In that moment, she realized that she was no longer just a government agent, but a part of something more significant, with people she had chosen with her heart.
...
Far from the room, Ren smiled as he observed Kalifa's conversation through Observation Haki.
'You didn't disappoint me, Kalifa...' he thought, feeling in a good mood. He then opened the system interface and checked Kalifa's status.
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¶[Name: Kalifa.]
¶[Age: 25.]
¶[Occupation: Not specified yet.]
¶[Affiliation: Sin Pirates.]
¶[Status: Stable.]
¶[Title: None.]
¶[Bounty: None.]
¶[Physical Power Level: 42,500 (D)]
¶[Loyalty: 70%.]
¶[Devil Fruit: None.]
¶[Devil Fruit Rating: None.]
¶[Skills: Shave (Low) - Moonwalk (Low) - Storm Kick (Low) - Iron Body (Low) - Finger Gun (Low) - Kami-e (Low).]
¶[Haki: None.]
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What intrigued Ren most was that her loyalty level had risen from 0% straight to 70%!
Some might think this percentage is low, but the truth is that it is very good, considering Kalifa's character. As a previously cold-blooded secret agent, she would never have placed her trust in anyone. Her loyalty reaching 70% was a sign that she indeed trusted Ren.
And Ren would make sure to make her even more loyal to him in the future...
....
Ren returned to Elsama using Moonwalk while carrying Vivi and Nami, then went back to his room to find Kalifa about to leave.
"Follow me, Kalifa; I'll show you something." He looked at the blonde and smiled, guessing her reaction to the Dimension in Elsama.
Kalifa looked at him with a rare slight smile on her face before her usual professional expression returned, and she nodded, "Please, Captain."
A minute later, Kalifa stood Infront of a medium-sized island, her mouth agape in shock.
"C-Captain... Is this island... inside the ship?!" she exclaimed in disbelief. Just moments ago, she had been standing on the deck of a strange ship floating in the sky. Initially, she thought it was the work of a specific Devil Fruit, but what she saw after entering that strange portal was what had left her shocked.
Ren laughed at her shock and led her to the large house where all the crew members had gathered.
Ren took a few minutes to explain to the crew about Kalifa's situation and how they should trust her. Initially, Kalifa was a bit tense since she didn't have anyone to share this "friendship" bond with. However, when she saw that the girls treated her kindly and did not shy away from her, she relaxed.
As for the girls, their reactions were not particularly strong regarding what had happened in the few hours Ren had been away, especially among smart members like Nami and Robin, who had known from the beginning that Kalifa would become one of them.
"Now , integrate with each other while I take care of some business here." He gently nudged Kalifa towards the group of girls and then sat down on a distant couch, looking at the medium-sized dining table in front of him.
He waved his hand, and in the next moment... many different Devil Fruits appeared!
It was time to check the harvest!
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To be continued...
500 PS = Bonus chapter.