Warship

Vin opened his eyes to a new environment. 'I swear I just died'. A strange figure approached him. It was incomprehensibly large, yet infinitesimally small. Its words spoke with no meaning, yet he understood every last bit. He had just died, and he was going to be reborn into a new world. Vin spoke no words, and neither did it, though they both undeniably understood what was happening.

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Vin awoke once more, his head still buzzing from the unknown sensation and interaction he just experienced. He was in a new world, though, and that was evident. Despite having no recollection of his previous life, his memory of the short interaction with the celestial figure did not disappear. His personality lingered, but the rest of him did not. 

He was in the line of a window as the sun shone directly in his eyes, prompting him to squint and cover them with his palm. Vin swung around and looked ahead. He was seated in a wooden room filled with gadgets and riches. In his white and blue outfit, a man entered the room. 

"Huh!!" The uniformed man shouted as he left the room. More people arrived not even a minute later. Vin rubbed his head, eyeing the crowd. 

"Where.. am I?" Vin asked, rubbing his eyes as he slowly raised himself onto his feet. The men in uniform raised their guns and sabers towards him. 

"Do not move an inch!!" They yelled at Vin. But Vin raised himself off of the ground regardless, still in an apparent daze. The armed men in uniform were astounded; their threats had no effect. They all exchanged glances before deciding on the most appropriate course of action. While those armed with rifles prepared to shoot Vin, the guys brandishing sabers took a position to charge Vin. 

"Do not shoot!!" A man behind them yelled. He pushed past the marines, eyeing Vin. "It does not seem he is of any threat to us. It is a mere child." The man said. It was true, Vin was only 16 at this point, and he was a lacklustre 166 centimetres tall, with little defined physical features.

"Water.. food.." Vin demanded supplies as opposed to bothering to express gratitude to the man. A piece of bread and a cup of water in an odd cylinder were delivered to him by the man. Vin laid back after finishing the cup and the bread. "Much better." Vin said. "Where am I?" He asked the man. 

The man who had saved him looked at Vin in surprise. "You are on a Marine Warship. How did you get here?" He asked. 

"Dunno."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it kinda just happened."

"Seems suspicious."

"Maybe." Vin stopped for a moment, questioning his next words. "What are marines?" He added. 

The man looked at Vin, flabbergasted. He turned back to the other uniformed men in shock and turned back to Vin. "Amnesia..? Either way, Marines are the force led by the World Government to protect the seas." 

"Seems simple enough." Vin said. "So, who are you?" 

"My name is Gorilla, a Navy Captain." Vin eyed the man. He did, in fact, look like a gorilla. "You should put some clothes on." Vin looked down, now realising he donned nothing. He looked back up at Gorilla with his monotone expression. "Alright.. I'll get you clothes." 

Once Gorilla returned with a spare marine uniform, Vin immediately equipped it and looked at what he now donned. It was a simple white, sleeveless shirt and a pair of navy blue pants. Seems fitting enough, he thought. 

As the men walked away to resume their duties, Vin eyed a mysterious golden box on a foldable plastic table near him. It was shiny, hence Vin wanted to open it. 

It was captivating. He couldn't resist. 

He tried to open the box normally by nudging the curved top open, but it remained shut. 'Only one way to open it.. brute force'. Vin dug his nails deep below the box's tiny opening and keyhole, creating a larger gap as he continued. Eventually, he pried it open, revealing a grey, spirally fruit. His hunger, just like his curiosity, got the better of him. He took a large bite out of the fruit. This tastes like cement. He continued eating until it was finished. 

Vin walked to the deck of the vessel and remained there while he observed the navy officers going about their business, chatting among themselves, and keeping an eye on the seas. Vin sat on the guardrail as he reached the ship's edge. His legs swayed like a child in excitement as they hung above the sea. 

Gorilla walked behind him. "You do not know where you came from?" He asked, tenaciously. 

Vin continued his gaze on the sea, his hands locked onto the top of the guardrail. "Nah." He said, his monotone voice and expression not shifting. He hadn't even bothered to see Gorilla. 

The navy captain paused for a moment. "Perhaps you should then join the Navy?" He told Vin. "We can take good care of you." 

"How much do I get paid?" Vin asked, averting his gaze from the sea to Gorilla. 

The captain looked at the teenager in disappointment. "When you first start, about.. 75,000 Beri a month?" He said. 

Vin assumed Beri was similar to Yen. "That is not a lot." He replied, turning his head back to the sea. 

"Well, housing and meals will not be of too much essence. You will mostly be living on a marine ship and will be fed regularly within said ship." He replied. "Besides, that salary increases as you climb up the ranks." 

Although he had no recollection of his past life, this somehow reminded him of Capitalism. "I see. I'll consider it." 

"Captain!! The Devil Fruit is gone!!" A marine yelled from behind, exiting the hall Vin had just resided in. 

Gorilla turned to Vin. "Did you eat it?"

"I thought it was cement."

"It was an incredibly rare fruit!"

"It was definitely cement." 

The navy captain sighed. "Devil Fruits are rare fruits that give you powers.. and they usually taste terrible." He told Vin. "And you just ate one! I could have you executed for this treachery." 

Vin swept his head from the sea once more, eyeing the Captain. "Is that so?" He turned back to the sea, admiring its luscious blue nature. 

"I suppose I cannot kill a child.." Gorilla paused, thinking. "That fruit you just consumed, it is the Kata Kata no Mi. You have become a 'molding' human." Vin perked up, sweeping himself off the guardrail, then sitting back on it, though now facing Gorilla. 

Gorilla continued. "It allows the user to mold the shape of any object they touch, but not its mass, so long as it is inorganic. As any Devil Fruit does, using it consumes your stamina and attempting to submerge yourself within water will make you sink." The captain informed Vin.

Vin nodded. 'Let's try it, then'. He hopped off the guardrail, touching it. Vin felt a unique energy flowing to his hand. The guardrail turned into a metallic sculpture of a gun. Then into a katana. Then into a cutlass. Then into a pipe. 

"It seems our research was correct." Gorilla stated, smiling proudly. His eyes widened as he watched Vin attempt to eat the metal guardrail after molding it into an apple. It was, of course, still metal. "What are you doing?" 

Vin stopped and turned to the captain. "I'm hungry."