chapter 110

"How the hell do you know my name?" the man, Urouge, asked as his smile faltered for a second. "That's my thing. I always know more than I should," I replied with a grin.

"My Name is Johnny Silver Hand, a musician and a pirate from West Blue," I added, extending my hand in his direction. "We're currently in the cloud sea above Nort Blue, so how did you end up here?" Urouge asked as he raised his hand with some difficulty, promptly shaking my own.

"I got lost on my way to the grand line," I replied again, shrugging my shoulders. "Now, you were about to tell me what's happening on the island," I added.

"Fine," Urouge said, grunting in pain as he sat up straight, facing me. "This sky island, Skyguard, people from other sky islands built it near the knock-up stream, to protect them for blue sea pirates with bad intentions," he explained, taking a sip of whisky.

"But as you can see, something went terribly wrong," the mad monk added while pointing his finger at the deserted buildings all around us.

"It happened exactly the same day the sky islanders finished building Skyguard," he explained while shaking his head. "Although it was built as a bastion to protect the sky people, it was still unmanned at the time," he added.

"Lokni, the pirate captain and his crew happened to be blown away here by sheer luck at that time," he explained in an amused tone. "The sky islanders quickly surrounded the pirates, but Lokni and his crew managed to trick them into gaining entry to Skyguard," he added, shaking his head.

"They seemed like decent people at first," he remarked, causing me to raise an eyebrow at his statement. "Decent enough for pirates anyway, and the people here were naïve enough to believe them," he concluded with a shrug.

"Some of the divine soldiers, including myself, objected to trusting these people, but the man who was to be Skyguard's god was someone who believed in the kindness of people," he remarked, turning around spitting at the ground.

"The pirates showed their true colors when we brought the cloud-cloud fruit here," he said with an expression of I told you so on his face.

"The cloud-cloud fruit is a devil fruit that only reincarnates on fruit that can only grow on North Blue's sky islands," he explained while pointing at a white tree.

"The fruits themselves taste horrible and are barely edible, but they carry a religious significance, so the devil fruit became somewhat of a national treasure," he added with an unconvinced expression.

"And you disagree?" I asked with a smile. "It all sounds like nonsense to my ears," he replied with a grin, shaking his head.

"But you still joined the divine guards?" I asked in a curious tone. "It was the only place I can get real training, and I liked their outfits," he replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"Can't argue with that," I remarked with a laugh. "So, what happened next?" I asked, getting back on topic.

"Lokni and his crew got wind of the fruit, and they acted quickly, robbing the fruit and killing many sky islanders in the process, including the would-be protector," he said while shaking his head.

"They chased out and killed almost everyone here and took over the city for themselves," he explained.

"What would they gain by taking over an empty sky island?" I asked in a confused tone, tilting my head to the side.

"The people who built this city equipped it with many weapons and powerful Dials," he replied. "But it was all intended for defense and not attack, and removing the weapons would render them useless," he added as he took another sip of alcohol.

"So they've been trying to control the island through the cloud devil fruit that their captain has stolen as the land itself is cloud," he explained, pointing at the white ground below us.

"Lokni seems to think he can control the sky island and make a mobile fortress so he can use it to become the pirate king," he concluded, his grin turning disdainful.

"I see," I replied while nodding my head in understanding. "So, what are you doing here on your own, then?" I asked after a second of silence, contemplating what the mad monk told me.

"I used to be one of the divine soldiers responsible for guarding the fruit, and by extension the protector who would eat it and become this sky island's god," he said in a bitter tone, but he didn't stop smiling.

"As the only survivor, it's my duty to at least take down the bastard who killed my charge, or at the very least die trying," he reasoned, his grin turning savage. "I went back to my home island, trying to gather reinforcement, but no one wanted to fight in a losing battle," he added, seemingly unresentful.

"So I resigned, made my way back here, and spent the last year hitting Lokni and his pirates whenever I could," he concluded.

"I get the picture now," I said, nodding again with a smile. "Well, you're in luck because I owe this Lokni guy for attacking my crew and me," I added as I stood up.

"And I always pay what my debts," I stated while cracking my knuckles. "So why don't you team up with me so we can take the bastard down together?" I asked as I extended my hand towards him again.

"The man ate a logia fruit, you know," Urouge said while looking at my extended hand with some amusement. "He's basically untouchable," he added, still grinning.

"I have a way around that," I replied, coating my arm in Haki. "This is what I used to defend your last attack," I explained while clenching and unclenching my hand.

"In addition to increasing one's defense and hitting power, it makes the user able to hit a logia devil fruit user's real body," I concluded as I straightened my hand and offered it to him again.

"Fine, but don't blame if you end up dying," he remarked as he took my hand and stood up with some difficulty. "There will be people dying. You can be sure of that," I replied with a smirk as I helped him to his feet.

"But it won't be me or my own," I concluded while shrugging my shoulders as I took out my transponder snail, instructing everyone to meet back at the ship.

"Let's get you patched up before we get that, though," I remarked as I picked up Urouge and carried him like the oversized potato sack he was, making my way back towards the black pearl.

-0-

I came back to the black pearl and had to stop, frowning at the sight of a dozen or so unconscious men neatly stacked on the docks with Wilson sitting not far from them, drinking leisurely.

"Call Doc Q," I instructed Bob, who was lazily leaning on the railing with his back facing me. "Tell him to patch my new friend here," I added as I dropped Urouge after I saw Bob nod and head into the ship.

"So what happened here, big guy?" I asked as I turned to look at Wilson. "They attacked the ship," he replied with a shrug.

"So I killed them," he added, a grin on his face. "I see. Any survivors?" I asked while nodding my head.

"None. These guys were more fragile than I expected," Wilson replied while scratching his head. "No matter, I already know what's happening, and we can catch more if need be," I remarked with a smile.

"So, does that mean I can finally get some action?" Wilson asked with an eager grin on his face. "Not yet. We need to wait for everyone to come back so we can make a plan first," I replied, causing him to sigh in annoyance.