Chapter 50 - Snowfall

(A/N: In hindsight, when I read the last chapter again, I think I put a little too much close interaction between Jin and Nami in it. I'll leave it, obviously, but it won't be anything romantic yet. For now, they will just be friends, but in the way that you might be friends with a girl, but she wouldn't be totally against saying yes if you asked her out kinda deal. You guys ever experience that? Maybe it's just me… In other words, I don't want to rush it too much. Whatever, ignore me. Enjoy the chappy. I had fun with this one. Probably one more chap after this before Jin goes home.)

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Inside Jin's inner world, his Zanpakuto spirit sat next to her table and raised her head as though looking at the sky from behind her blindfold. Somehow, her dark bamboo hat defied gravity and remained on her head regardless. Her lips curled upward after watching the change in Jin since discussing dreams with Luffy. She then looked around.

Below her, the concrete-like floor turned glossy white. Partial transparency revealed a flowing sea full of stars below. Above the glossy floor, some silhouettes in the distance could now be seen. Statues. Buildings. Plants. All of varying origins.

"Hm… You have opened yourself widely again, although not as much as in the past. Still, it is good that you have taken a step, as awkward as you are in walking this path as of yet. You will never know how glad I am to have obtained the opportunity to watch over you, even if it is in a roundabout manner such as this. I look forward to the day when you find a balance in your new path."

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As the Going Merry left Reverse Mountain, Jin leaned on the railing and watched the Red Line slowly dip behind the horizon behind them. Knowing how important the Red Line was regarding the history of this world, he pondered how much to involve himself beyond the Chat Group missions now that he had joined the Straw Hats, albeit in a fashion akin to that of a part-timer.

'The next time the Red Line pops up is Fishman Island or something, if I remember correctly. I'd rather not reveal too much about the history of the world and whatnot until the rest of these guys are stronger. Wouldn't want the World Government chasing after them too early on. Well, whatever. That's a bit in the future. For now, I've still got almost a week before I need to head home, so training while I have the time is the priority. Having fun with the crew is second, I guess.'

Noticing Jin's pondering expression, Zoro walked over and leaned on the railing beside him. They both exchanged a nod before Zoro asked, "What are you thinking about?"

"Training, mostly. Surprised you aren't sleeping, though."

"Hm, yeah. I woke up a minute ago. Wanna train with me? I figured out how to shut off that Acceleration skill until now because it was annoying, but since you're here anyway, I figured I may as well ask."

"Sure. Why not? I need to train my bladework a bit, too. I don't care to be the best swordsman, but I wouldn't mind being number two," Jin thoughtfully replied with a subtle smile.

"Hmph. Of course, since that'll be the only title left after I reach the peak."

The two men walked to the front of the deck without saying anything else. Along the way, Zoro grabbed a bag full of katanas shaped from wood. They looked like hand-crafted bokkens since they each differed slightly from each other.

On the deck, they stood opposite each other. Zoro wielded two wooden blades, whereas Jin wielded one with both hands.

"Are you going to try using that skill right from the start?" Jin asked.

"No. I want to see how good you are first."

"Alright."

Soon, their wooden blades cracked against each other. Zoro's pure physical strength pushed Jin onto his back foot, but didn't completely overwhelm him. At first, Zoro's blades smacked Jin's non-vital areas occasionally. As time passed, however, he received fewer and fewer hits.

"You're a bit weak," Zoro commented.

"People in this world are just too strong," Jin retorted, barely keeping up. However, he definitely felt a difference in his physique since arriving here. Two days ago, Zoro might have overpowered him instantly.

On the sidelines, both Mr. 9 and Vivi, currently Miss Wednesday, watched with wide eyes.

"This crew seems a bit stronger than average, Miss Wednesday," Mr. 9 whispered to Vivi. "I'm thinking that one of these two might even be the captain in disguise, and that they are tricking us."

In response, she nodded solemnly and replied, "We might have some trouble with these ones. We should warn the others when we return."

At the same time, Luffy exited the cabin chewing on fish bones and noticed the spar between Zoro and Jin. Immediately, his eyes lit up.

"Who do I cheer for… Hey, Usopp!"

"Need something, Luffy?" Usopp asked, turning his head away from the repairs he was working on.

"I don't know who to cheer for, so I'll cheer for Zoro, and you cheer for Jin. Then, we'll switch every few minutes."

Usopp gave his captain a stupid look, but then said, "I'm busy."

The next second, a hand stretched over and pulled him toward the center of the deck to watch the spar. The long-nosed young man could only sigh in resignation and cheer along with Luffy. Obviously, he put his whole heart into it. How could he not give his all in cheering for a fellow crewmate even if they didn't know each other well?

Jin and Zoro didn't even notice the cheering. They focused wholeheartedly on their spar. Eventually, though, Zoro stopped and said, "Let's take a break. Your swordsmanship is pretty good, but your strength is a bit lacking to challenge me head on for now."

"Hmm… It might be like that for a little bit."

"Here. Juice," Sanji said, arriving next to them before they realized it.

"Thanks Sanji," Jin said, patting the guy on the shoulder. Ignoring the subsequent grimace, Jin added, "You're a very thoughtful guy."

"Ugh. I don't want to hear that from a pervert who touched Nami-chan so intimately earlier."

"Hm? I can pick you up too if you want," Jin retorted with a joking smirk.

Sanji froze. Then, he gagged.

"Bahahahaha! Look at your stupid face, blondie!" Zoro laughed animatedly, pointing his finger at the poor guy.

Sanji clicked his tongue and pulled away the other orange juice before Zoro could grab it and said, "None for you."

Enjoying the show, Jin sipped on the orange juice with gusto. In his head, though, he mentally reviewed his spar with Zoro.

'Seems like the Power Veins granted me physical potential in line with this world on top of my strength from practicing magic and Shinigami powers. I'm already a lot stronger than when I trained with Jellal. Initial growth will probably be quick, like going to the gym, but I'm sure it'll get tougher eventually.'

Suddenly, he found that his orange juice was gone. When he looked up again, he saw Zoro and Sanji fighting each other. Cracks appeared on the deck and railing when their attacks missed.

"Can't you two stop?!" Usopp exclaimed, holding his head. "I just finished repairing that area!"

While observing the fight with curious eyes, Jin called out, "Hey, Sanji, what should I do with my empty glass?"

"Gimme a sec to knock this loser out and I'll grab it!"

"Nah. Just take it to the kitchen, Jin. This guy'll be lost in the clouds soon," Zoro said.

Two fists slammed down on the guys' heads before they could attack each other again.

"Knock it off, knuckleheads. Do you know how much the materials to repair this ship cost?" Nami asked.

Kneeling at her feet, Zoro and Sanji held their heads with pained but dumbfounded expressions. The next second, though, Sanji immediately smiled at her and said, "Okay~! I'll stop, just for you, Nami-chuaaan!"

"Hm?" Jin suddenly noticed a cold feeling on his arms. Then, he looked up. "Snow? Ah, right, there was something like that, wasn't there?"

Before long, several inches of snow fell layer upon layer on top of the deck. Within the cabin, Nami sipped a hot drink of some kind that Sanji made for her and looked outside through the window.

"You're keeping an eye on the log pose?" Jin asked casually while carrying a few shovels from the storage room.

"Yeah. It's honestly annoying how little my navigation skills help me here. The Grand Line really doesn't follow common sense."

"Of course it doesn't. Didn't you know that when you came here?" Vivi, currently Miss Wednesday, asked. She started ranting about the craziness of the Grand Line, but then two shovels clanked onto the table in front of her.

"How about you go outside and shovel instead of lazing about here?" Jin asked with a friendly smile. He didn't realize that the two Baroque Works members saw it as anything but friendly.

"Yessir!" Mr. 9 instantly replied. He grabbed a shovel and sprinted out the door.

"Are you two scared of me or something?" Jin asked Vivi before she could leave.

"O- of course not."

"There's no need to be. I'm a very laid back person."

"I- I got it. I'll get right on it, sir!"

Jin blinked. He looked at Nami, pointed at his own face, and asked, "I'm not that scary, right?"

"...Maybe? Your smile is a bit off, though, like you're not used to it. Mainly, I think they are scared of your Devil Fruit."

"I don't have a Devil Fruit. It's just magic. That first part, though… makes sense, unfortunately."

"Eh? Magic? Right, I forgot you mentioned that before."

"Yup. Anyway, I'm going to go shovel…"

Nami nodded as he left the cabin.

Once the door shut behind Jin, the cold weather slapped him in the face. He felt thankful that he chose to wear at least a windbreaker even though his supernatural energy staved off a lot of the biting frost. However, another priority made itself known as he continued the sentence he left unfinished inside the cabin.

"…or maybe build a mecha made of snow."

Amidst the winter wonderland, the two leeches, otherwise known as Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday, shoveled snow alongside Sanji. Elsewhere, Luffy, Usopp, and Zoro built snow figures and used them to battle. Well, Zoro's snowman looked like a misshapen rice ball, but it did its best against Luffy's super snowman and Usopp's legitimate masterpiece of a snow sculpture.

With a grin, Jin cast some barriers to lift mounds of snow and pack it into a mech reminiscent of the Guren from Code Geass. He chose it mostly because he owned a Geass himself. The other three guys all dropped their jaws upon seeing the finished product. Luffy's jaw even hit the floor.

"Taste the power of my Stand, Guren Typo-02!" Jin said, grinning from ear to ear. He waved a hand to move the snow mecha with small barriers and blasted the other snowmen into smithereens.

"Oh, you asked for it now!" Usopp declared.

"Ah, Mister Snowman!" Luffy cried.

"..." Zoro didn't even say anything. He just chopped the Mecha sculpture in half.

This time, Jin's mouth widened. Then, he fell to his knees and jokingly said, "I can't believe you've done this."

From there, an epic snowball fight ensued. Eventually, Sanji got drawn in after being hit one too many times. Even Mr. 9 and Vivi joined in by the end of it, unwilling to simply take a beating from densely packed snowballs thrown faster than any baseball pitch.

In the middle of the snowball fight, Zoro stopped in front of the two hitchhikers and studied their faces while rubbing his chin.

"What did you say your names were again?"

"M- Mr. 9…"

"M- Miss W-Wednesday."

"Right. Those names have been bugging me for a while…"

A snowball smacked Zoro in the face, interrupting him. Turning his head, he saw Sanji smirking at him. Then, Sanji tossed a tightly packed football-sized snowball into the air and readied his stance to kick it.

"Friendly Snowy Kickball of Fiery Friendship!" Sanji yelled.

"That doesn't make any sense! And who's your friend?!" Zoro retorted, slicing the snowball in half with his bare hands. The two sides of the ball smacked the hitchhikers in the face and knocked them out.

"Oops."

"What are those boys doing…" Nami grumbled while controlling the ship.

By the end of the day, they passed through the snowy season into warm weather and calm seas again. A giant dolphin jumped over the ship at one point, startling them all. Even Jin widened his eyes since it was just about as big as Laboon, if not bigger.

A few days passed. Jin and Zoro trained together every day. Each time they sparred, the intensity increased, forcing Jin to cast stronger non-mobile barriers to protect the deck of the Going Merry. Gradually, his physical strength barely increased enough to help Zoro train his Acceleration skill a little. Luffy cheered them on, joined in on the spars, messed around, or napped on the ram-like figurehead during that time. Nami focused on navigating but occasionally asked Jin questions about the Grand Line. He couldn't answer all of them, but he answered some of the general knowledge he could remember, such as the fact that more than just humans inhabited the Grand Line or that Devil Fruit users roamed all over the place. Overall, he didn't bother mentioning the future since it probably didn't matter anyway due to the butterfly effect, but he gave her enough general knowledge to help the crew avoid minor pitfalls or inconveniences that didn't benefit anyone. He avoided bringing up Haki for the time being, however. From what he remembered, they needed to be a decent bit stronger before training it. Instead, he simply warned her that the Marines from the Grand Line were typically far stronger than the ones from East Blue, especially the officers. The others didn't care too much about such knowledge, so Nami just made notes for herself to keep track of.

Finally, at the end of the fourth day since leaving Loguetown, they spotted their first stop on their journey, Whiskey Peak.