Canon Fodder

CHAPTER 151 BLOWN AWAY

“What about Hancock?” Shakky asked. I was the last one in the bar, the others had just stepped out. 

“I will see her in a few days…I hope,” I said. “Don’t worry. I keep my word. Take care of the girls.” I said pointing to the 3 slave girls. They wore long sleeved clothes. I moved to step out but was stopped by a small voice. 

“Wait,” she whispered. I looked over to see the young girl talking. I eyed her. “Thank you,” she whispered. 

I smiled widely, a tear coming to my eye. “Of course. You’re free now, kid. Try to join some pirates and wreak havoc on those bastards that did that to you, alright?” I asked. She actually cracked a smile with that and I was out the door. 

“What was that?” Nami asked. 

“Shakky said I had to pay the bill,” I said. 

“What? She said it was free,” Nami said. 

“Guess she changed her mind,” I said. “Come on. I hear gunfire.” All around us it sounded like distant gunfire and cannons were being shot off. 

“I’ll move your ship,” Rayleigh said from atop one of the Grove roots. We waved him off as he headed in the opposite direction, straight to Grove 41. 

“Where should we hide out?” Usopp asked nervously as the gunfire became louder.

“I vote up in the canopy of the trees,” I said looking up. “Franky, could you make a giant tree house?” 

“I bet I could,” Franky said looking up. “I’d need a lot of wood.” 

“Yosh!” Luffy yelled excitedly as he started running down the stairs to the main floor of the island. “A tree house sounds exciting. Can we have campfires in it?” 

“I’m sure there’s a way,” Zoro said. 

“I can’t believe that there is what sounds like a war going on around us and you guys are talking about a tree house,” Nami grumbled. 

“Nami, Nami, Nami,” Usopp said, shaking his head. “Tree houses are every man’s dream.” 

“He’s not wrong there, Nami, Nami, Nami,” I added, shaking my head. “Picture it. We could have a maze of them. Our own city of tree houses. Connected with zip lines and rope bridges. Then we could have our own fights in the trees. The marines would never look up. I’ve heard they’re like dinosaurs. If you don’t move they can’t see you.” 

“They are!?” Luffy asked excitedly. 

“Maybe, I’ve never tri-” I stopped as I saw the man approaching us. I thought I would be happy to see him, but it all came back to me. The pain in my still healing scars ached. 

Bartholomew Kuma stood straight ahead from us. The black coat with the Gaelic cross symbol, the paw prints, the curly hair, the bear ears. Everything about him made intense pain move through my body as I stared at him. 

“You” “No!” “Get away” The Straw Hats yelled. 

“What’s wrong, Weston?” Luffy asked me worriedly. I looked down to my hands to see them shaking a little. Breathing in and out I tried to get past the feeling of fear but it wasn’t happening. “Are you trying to see if he can see you when you don’t move?” He asked innocently. 

And that was all I needed. I laughed loudly looking into the captain’s eyes. Loudly and awkwardly, feeling it in my gut as the fear disappeared for a moment. I thought maybe my Conqueror’s Haki had reacted to all the emotions of the auction house. I guessed my emotions and thus Haki had been wound up since going through such intense pain. But Luffy made it better by making me laugh. 

“Yes, captain,” I said, wiping sweat from my brow. “Think it’s working?” 

“I don’t think so,” Luffy said. “He’s gotten closer.” I looked up to Kuma and nodded. The 20 foot tall man was much closer. 

“Straw Hat Luffy!” A robotic voice said. We all looked up to the Kuma. Surprised since most of us had heard his real voice. “Submit now for extraction from Sabaody.” 

“Oh shit,” I said, realizing. “That’s not Kuma. That’s a robot!” I yelled out. I totally forgot about them. 

“A robot?” Franky asked inquisitively. 

“A robot?!” Chopper and Luffy asked excitedly. 

“A Pacifista, or something. Yeah, the real Kuma is an android, but this is a robot,” I said. 

“What does that mean?” Nami asked worriedly. 

“It means we need to kick it’s ass to proceed,” I said. “They are robots for the marines.” That was all the prompting the crew needed. I pulled out my Jitte, Zoro drew his swords, Luffy lifted his fists, Sanji took a drag from his cigarette, Nami twirled her Climatact bow staff, Usopp lifted his sling weapon, Brook drew his cane sword, Franky raised his hands, Chopper prepared a rumble ball. All of us ready to fight for our freedom. 

“Warning, violence will be met with violence,” the Pacifista Kuma said. 

“Good,” Luffy said. Punching the Kuma from far away the Kuma lifted his hand. Palm out. I was worried I had it wrong, but instead of a puppy pad paw on his palm he had a hole where a laser beam shot out from. 

Luffy moved his fist at the right moment, twisting around the beam, and the fight really started. I would like to say we were obviously winning, but everything we threw at the robot made it obvious none of us were ready for this. We jumped in and out taking turns throwing our all at the strong robot man. 

Luffy used his 2nd and 3rd gears. Causing the Pacifista to be thrown back. Zoro slashed at the clothes, revealing the metal circuitry underneath. Sanji threw kick after kick into him. Then The Pacifista got serious. Shooting lasers from both hands it started to do it from it’s mouth too. Robin grew arms on the Pacifista’s neck, pulling the head down to close on the laser it tried to shoot. It was so powerful that the beam burst through the closed teeth. 

Nami began twirling her Climatact causing a lightning bolt to shoot from it. Brook jumped high in the air stabbing down on the robot. Franky used the cola he stored in his body to shoot a high pressure attack to throw the Pacifista back. Usopp fired flaming shots at the robot. Chopper turned into his karate form, trying to damage it.

Me, I got in what shots I could. When it was my turn I used my quirk to exponentially increase the temperature in front of my hand. Causing the robot’s clothes to burst into flames. I would like to say that it was the end of the fight, but the Pacifista began learning our moves. 

Firing more hand and mouth lasers we had to keep pushing and were becoming exhausted as the fight went on. When Luffy had enough and was blowing up his hand again for another hit the Pacifista was scratched and burned everywhere. Luffy drew his arm back and punched it with all he had. The Pacifista hit the ground and finally didn’t get up again.

We breathed in and out heavily, all of us exhausted from the fight. That proved it to me. One Piece world was harder than Naruto World. I prepared to move into Kame Mode to replenish my stores when I saw him walking up. The real Kuma. I knew it was him because he had the Bible book in his hand. 

“Another one!” Luffy yelled angrily as he struggled to get up. 

I bit my lip, stepping forward. “This one is the real Shichibukai,” I said. “What’s the deal Kuma?! You promised last time. You going to keep your word?” I studied the emotionless man for a bit, taking in deep breaths. He continued to walk forward and to my surprise he began taking off his glove. 

“If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be?” Kuma asked. 

I let out a sigh. “If I could choose? Somewhere I can learn Haki,” I said. Kuma nodded as he continued to step toward me. I turned around, looking at the crew, studying them as I prepared myself. “I don’t know if you guys noticed, but we are struggling too much with these fights. It took all of us to beat that one Pacifista.” I pointed to the robot we barely beat. 

“We aren’t ready for the New World. We need to train more,” I said. “So, I don’t think we will be back in 3 days. I don’t know how long, but we will meet back up again.” I looked at them one by one, feeling the android stop walking behind me. 

“Weston, what are you saying?” Luffy asked, tears in his eyes. 

“I’m saying goodbye for now, my friends,” I said. I looked back at Kuma as he swung his arm wide, and watched the puppy paw palm come toward me. I wanted to say I didn’t flinch, but I did. Closing my eyes I had expected a hit, but it never came. Opening my eyes I was flying through the air. 

Along with having the ability to push air at great distances, create giant condensed bubbles of air, somehow push pain and exhaustion from someone and make it a tangible object, Kuma could also send people flying anywhere in the world. The rest of the crew and I would be sent to the corners of the Grand Line, then meet up again on the Archipelago in 2 years. 

In some sort of paw shaped bubble made by Kuma, no sound leaked in from the outside of the devil fruit capsule. Looking around, the Archipelago was already gone. I was soaring through the air horizontally. Water and sky flying by me I had hoped to be shooting like 100 miles per hour but I guessed it was maybe 20. Way less than I had thought I would be. I resigned myself to sit and wait, or lay and wait in the air. 

Unsure where he sent me I had considered asking for Amazon Lily since that was my ultimate goal. But I wanted somewhere to train. Kuma proved himself a good person to choose where to send people. So I waited. Thinking about my choices. I felt I warned the Straw Hats enough. They could start training and after I saved Luffy’s bro-sister, we could send out a message to meet in 2 years. 

I had hoped to see the island I would land on aerially but instead I landed at night while I was sleeping. I didn’t feel anything when I stopped flying. A pawprint indentation formed around me as I landed. I slept soundly until the morning. 

—

I got up to the splash of water all around me. Excitedly sitting up I noticed that I was on a beach. Looking around, water was around me on both sides of a shore. Once on my feet I noticed that instead of being on an island I was on a sandbar. Water all around me the sandbar went off in 2 directions on either side of me. Going off they went away in arcs to meet up about a half a mile away, forming a ring. 

“Hello!” I yelled. There was nothing and no one around. “Mother fucking Kuma,” I mumbled as I began walking around the ring of an island. The sand was fine and almost pure white. Outside of the ring was a deep blue showing the true depth of the vast ocean around me. Since there was little to no wind I guessed I was in the Calm Belt somewhere. 

About to give up I decided to check out the water at least. Heading into the inner pool I held my breath and was surprised at how deep it was. The sand took a steep dive soon away from the shore. Dropping down there was something I hadn’t expected at the center. A house in a bubble. 

Jumping off the ledge of the sand bar I began to swim straight down to the large home. A clear bubble holding air in around the house there was a garden of fruits and veggies planted in the soil near the house. I got closer, feeling the bubble I knew that it should be fine to go in. Pushing my hand through, the elasticity of the bubble pushed in around my hand then rebounded, allowing my hand in. 

I did the same with the rest of my body and I was dropping down to the small path inside of the bubble. Taking in deep breaths it was an eerie feeling to be taking in breath from a giant air bubble underwater like Sonic the Hedgehog. Looking around the house was surprisingly rustic. It appeared to be made of old ship wood. Dried out wood beams made up the walls, carved mermaids that would ornament a ship acted as pillars for the home. The roof was the curved keel of the ship. 

“Hello!” I yelled.

“Who the hell is interrupting my peace?!” A female voice yelled. I had expected an old man’s, or if I was lucky a pretty woman, but no, the voice sounded like the woman smoked instead of breathed. 

“I was…sent here,” I said tentatively. The front door burst open angrily revealing a black/white woman. Not the skin tones of course, pure black and white. I recognized her for what she was, a fishfolk. Like Arlong she was a bipedal humanoid with the features of a fish. Her ancestry appeared to be that of an orca. White chin that moved down into her shirt, the top of her head was ink-black. She wasn’t fat like an orca, but had a normal sized human head, arms, and legs. At her back was a black fin that curved around  to touch her back. Obviously older she had wrinkles, but she was not what I expected to find there. 

“What?!” She barked, “never seen a fishwoman?” 

“No actually, I met a bunch of fishmen. Fought the Arlong Pirates a few months back,” I said. “Never met a fishwoman.” 

“You fought the Arlong Pirates?” She asked, rage in her eyes. Extending her hand she picked up a javelin against the wall. “Come for some more fish?” 

“No! No!” I yelled backing up. “I don’t have a problem with fishfolk,” I admitted. “I’m sorry. Wrong thing to say. I was sent here by Bartholomew Kuma.” 

She stopped in her tracks. Her large eyes squinting. “Kuma? That jackass?” She relaxed a little but kept her weapon in her hands. Eyeing me up and down. “What about it? Why did he send you here?” 

“He uh, asked me if I could go anywhere, where would it be? I told him I wanted to learn Haki,” I said. “He bitch slapped me here.” 

The woman looked me up and down again. Then barking a laugh she threw the javelin, but luckily not at me. Throwing it at the house it stuck into the thick wood with a thunk. “Sounds like Kuma,” she scoffed. “Sorry, I don’t teach humans. You can head that way. If you’re lucky you’ll make it to the nearest island.” She turned around and headed back into her house. 

I stood there shocked for a minute. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. She was supposed to take me in immediately. This lady wasn’t Mihawk. “What!? No!” I said as the door slammed. I ran up to it knocking. “I need your help, please,” I said. “My pirate friends and I keep getting our asses kicked on the Grand Line. I need training.” 

“Not interested, I hate humans,” she said from inside the house. 

“But why? I didn’t do anything to you,” I said. 

“Don’t care, you all killed our queen,” she said. 

“No we didn’t. Hordy Jones did that,” I blurted. She quieted with that. We hadn’t gone to Fishman Island yet, but I knew the story. Their queen was supposedly killed by a human, but it was really a fishman that hated humans with a passion. “Hordy Jones did it. Blamed a human. Humans aren’t that stupid…okay we are stupid, but not that stupid.” 

“How can you know that?” She asked. 

“I…heard it,” I said. 

“Then how the hell have I not?” She asked through the door. 

“I don’t know. Sometimes I know things, but the news will come out…eventually,” I said. 

She hesitated, but still didn’t answer. I could tell that wasn’t enough for her. “Lady, I don’t know your name, but I have to go. But I need to come back for training.” 

“That makes no sense!” She barked. 

“I know. My pirate captain. His sister is about to be executed by the marines. I have to go save her at Impel Down. Her and…Jimbei, yeah Jimbei is there. I plan to save him too.” 

“Jimbei?” She asked, opening the door. “What about him?” 

“He is in Impel Down, right?” I asked. She handed me a paper showing that the Shichibukai Jimbei was arrested for trying to get Firefist Ash out of prison. Because she was a Whitebeard Pirate, Jimbei was appreciative of her and Whitebeard. “See, I need to save him and Firefist Ash.” 

“What the hell, that’s the most unbelievable story I’ve ever heard,” she said. Frowning as she stared me up and down. 

“Then it’s crazy, right? It will never happen? So if I can make it happen, you’ll train me?” I asked. 

“You’re crazy, kid,” she said. 

“You’ll train me on Haki, right? Lady, I need this. Please, I have to save Ash and Jimbei. If I do, you’ll train me?” I asked. She frowned, staring at me.

Rolling her eyes she said, “An autograph.” 

“What?” 

“Get me Jimbei’s autograph too and you got yourself a deal,” she said. 

“Awesome. What’s your name? I’ll have him address it to you,” I said. 

She cracked a smile. “Angiea,” she. 

“Angiea, you got it. If I get Jimbei out of prison, and get an autograph, you’ll train me?” I asked. 

“Yeah, you do all that, I’ll train you,” she said, unbelieving the words. 

“No take backs,” I said, turning around and running out of the bubble. On my swim up I looked through the store and found the Log Pose for Amazon Lily. It was only 1,000,000 berries so I bought it as soon as I surfaced. Before I could take a step toward it I received the quest. 

One Piece Quest 10:

Save Portgas D. Ashley from the Marines.

Rewards:

100,000,000 Berries