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One Way Home, Chapter 4
🕑 Added 2023-11-19 08:52:48 +0000 UTCChapter 4:
—OoOoO—
Going Merry, the Straw Hat Pirates’ ship, stopped in a bay. There was a large altar in the middle. Nothing happened after Zoro's team was taken to that place. However, ending up in the middle of nowhere wasn’t good. As such, they decided to divide the tasks. Zoro, Nami, and Robin explored the land Nami said was part of the Upper Yard. Meanwhile, Maki and Chopper chose to stay on the ship just in case.
There was no particular reason why Maki preferred to stay. Although a small part of it was because she felt sorry for leaving Chopper alone on the ship, for the rest, she just wanted to stay.
“Maki, Maki!”
The bespectacled girl in a ponytail turned her head when she heard the distinctive voice of a small child.
“Why weren't you surprised the first time we met?” Chopper asked.
“Surprised for what?”
“A talking deer. Isn't it strange?”
Maki raised an eyebrow while looking at Chopper. It wasn't like she wasn't surprised. The thing was, regardless of the cause, a phenomenon like Chopper was nothing new to her.
“Well, in my world, I’ve a friend who is more or less the same as you. He’s a talking panda.”
Chopper's eyes lit up when he heard that testimony.
“Are talking animals normal in your world?”
"Not really. I've never travelled the world, but I'm sure my friend is the only one.”
Chopper sat next to Maki while looking at the sky with a smile on his face.
"Why?" Maki asked.
“People in my hometown think I'm a monster because I can talk. Only doctors Hiluluk and Doctorine accepted me. But everything changed when I met Luffy and the others. After hearing your story, I wanted to go to your world and meet animals that could talk."
Maki looked at the fawn with a deep gaze. Even for a kid like him, Chopper had been through a lot. Being different from others and leaving his hometown to find his place in the world, Maki was very familiar with the story. The similarity of the story with her own invited pity for him.
"Well, if you don't change your mind, say that again later when I've found my way home," Maki said.
"Oh, can I?"
Maki nodded at the question, "However, if you're looking for a talking animal, you may find one if you sail to the other side of this world."
"You think so?" Chopper asked.
“I'm not sure, though. But if fishmen exist, wouldn't it be reasonable to assume that a race of talking animals also exists?”
Thanks to their sociable nature, the Straw Hat Pirates had told Maki many things. And all the stories based on their adventures were worthy information. Maki could conclude one thing based on the information she heard. This world was much crazier than Earth.
Maki couldn't imagine a colossal continent surrounding the planet like a giant wall. She couldn't even imagine what the highest mountain in the world would look like, where the waters of the four seas flowed in strong currents through the moat, bringing them to the Grand Line. Let alone all that, the knock-up stream she experienced still felt like a fairy tale to her.
And what's worse, it was nothing compared to all Grand Line’s anomalies. Based on all the craziness, it felt like the existence of groups of talking animals was just something normal, even though Maki herself had never seen one.
While the two creatures were chatting peacefully, Maki's sharp ears suddenly picked up a suspicious sound. Standing up from her seat on the floor, Maki then looked up.
"It seems we've an uninvited guest," said the girl.
Chopper also stood up and looked in the direction Maki was looking at.
“That… a giant bird?”
“Yeah, and in some ways, it looks cool,” Maki replied casually.
The animal that flew over was a bird larger than a war horse. That bird had blue and orange feathers on its neck. Its eyes looked sharp, and it was clear that its beak was very sturdy. From its size alone, ordinary people would be immediately intimidated. That was proven by Chopper's body starting to shiver slightly.
On top of the giant bird, a person could be seen wearing a 1900s aviator outfit, complete with a helmet and goggles, carrying a lance in his right hand.
"I don't think you came with any good intentions, but I'll ask first, just in case. What's your business?" Maki asked after they were close enough to communicate with some shouting.
“If someone wants to survive, then someone else must die. That's the rule of the world," said the aviator.
The man jumped from his mount and landed smoothly on the poop deck's railing. After confirming his footing, he continued his words.
“Did you know that this is a sacrificial altar? Right now, your other friends are risking their lives to save you. On this island, each of the four priests controls a territory. When the target—.”
Before the man could finish the explanation, Maki cut him off.
“Blah… blah… blah…. Just say that you want to kill us. Rule? Sacrifice? It seems like your boss is too childish to make such ridiculous rules just to kill a few people.”
The man glared at Maki. His mouth was locked for a few moments until he exhaled while closing his eyes.
“No heavenly punishment for you, huh? You should be grateful for God's mercy that he showed you.”
“What? Are you the subordinates of the person who claims to be a god that those people at Angel Beach say?" Maki said with a mocking smile.
"This is why I hate people from the Blue Sea. Their ignorance of this heaven irritates me greatly."
The man pointed his lance at Maki. And at his will, a large burst of fire emerged from the object's tip. The flames quickly rushed towards Maki and burned everything in its path. However, the girl had such a good reflex that she could dodge it easily while holding Chopper in her left hand.
"Fire? Is he a devil fruit user?" muttered the girl.
"No. The devil fruit user with fire power is Luffy's brother. And each devil fruit is unique, so there won't be the same power at once," said Chopper.
The fawn was still scared but couldn't hold back his anger when he saw the man so lightly set fire to their ship. However, his instincts as a wild animal kicked in and told him that this man wasn’t just anyone.
Meanwhile, Maki, who received correction from Chopper, could quickly draw a new conclusion.
“Is that so? That means it's using the power of the dial," she said as she put Chopper to the floor, "Hide and put out the fire once I can kick the guy out."
Without waiting for a reply from Chopper, Maki immediately dashed towards the man in the aviator suit. When their distance was cut to two metres, Maki quickly drew her looted sword and slashed it at the man. However, he quickly dodged it by shifting his body diagonally half a step to the backside.
The man didn't let Maki just take the momentum. Shifting his body backwards was a preventive measure to kill the next attack and provide a counterattack to Maki. With a stance, he thrust his lance straight into her stomach. However, the girl could anticipate it well.
Right after the man avoided her attack and took half a step back, Maki swiftly closed the distance by one and a half steps and immediately drew her sword. Unfortunately, like before, Maki's attack only hit air when her opponent turned his body 90 degrees to the side.
'He can avoid it again? Even though I didn't use my max speed, seeing him dodge my attack effortlessly was surprising. Moreover, something off about his movements.'
Generally, fighters would pay attention to small details in their opponent's movements and then rely on reflexes to avoid attacks. Even if one was gifted with sharp instincts, it would be useless in high-level combat if the person didn’t know how to read movements and had insufficient reflexes. However, what Maki felt about her opponent greatly differed from her fighting experiences.
Even when facing a person or even a cursed spirit with speedy reflexes, she had never felt as awkward as she felt right now.
Maki increased the intensity but at a constant pace to ensure the feeling. She lay low and slashed her sword at her opponent's leg. However, the man dodged it by taking a step back. But Maki didn't just leave it like that. She twisted her body and tackled him. Unfortunately, he again dodged it by jumping to the top floor, where the steering wheel was located.
Not wanting to give it a chance, the glasses girl followed her opponent. The same thing kept repeating itself. With her intensity, Maki dominated while her opponent had difficulty finding gaps to counterattack and could only dodge.
'As I thought, he didn't just dodge by reading my movements. More than that, it's as if he can feel the direction my attack is coming from, so he can move accordingly,' Maki thought.
The man in the aviator suit also had the same complaints about his opponent but on a different topic.
'What's wrong with this girl? The way she fights is absolutely insane. She continued to attack me without giving me any openings. All her movements weren’t just about attacking, but also preparing to defend simultaneously.'
Even though the man was in a hurry, he didn't let it show on his face. He cursed his opponent, who fought like a flawless soldier. Feeling frustrated at his opponent, he took another long leap backwards and swung his lance diagonally. By pressing the activation button on the handle, a large amount of fire shot out from the tip of the weapon and burned Maki, who was still trying to chase him.
Unfortunately, that girl's endurance was no joke. She just dashed through the flames like it was nothing. Taking a different approach, Maki intended to step on her opponent's feet. But still, the man could anticipate it well with his right foot taking one step back.
Because Maki's stomp was so strong, her foot penetrated and stuck to the wooden floor. The man had expected that and smiled when he saw that a golden opportunity had finally appeared.
'Good,' thought Maki.
Unfortunately, before the so-called priest could counterattack, he felt another attack from Maki. More precisely, it came from Maki's right foot, stuck on the wooden floor.
The girl in the ponytail kicked her stuck leg up. This caused the surrounding floor to crumble and pieces of wood to fly into the air. It was clear that the kick was targeting his crotch area, which was why the man took a step back to avoid it.
'She's really fast,' complained the man.
Maki quickly returned to her fighting stance and immediately threw her sword at the aviator. They were only less than two metres apart. However, with his abilities, the man deflected the sword using his lance. When Maki lost her sword, he thought breaking Maki's dominance was a golden opportunity. However, one thing escaped his attention, he forgot that the wood fragments from the floor Maki destroyed were still flying in the air.
That was what Maki planned. She threw her sword just as a sharp splinter of wood flew up to her knees. When her opponent was busy parrying the sword that Maki threw and thought he had a chance, that was when Maki kicked the piece of wood while doing a backflip.
A thrown sword, a backflip that looked like they were opening attacks, and a wooden splinter kicked towards him. The man was overwhelmed by the information. Therefore, he failed to anticipate the wood splinter when he parried Maki's sword and thought of attacking Maki right after she landed. That small error meant that the sharp piece of wood that had been kicked hard managed to stick firmly into his shoulder.
The man grimaced in pain, causing him to lose momentum. Meanwhile, Maki, who had landed, quickly delivered a roundhouse kick that hit her opponent's head. Maki didn't put much force into the kick because she didn't want to cause more damage than she already had. However, the kick was enough to send the man flying several metres until he stopped after hitting the railing and destroying it.
Even so, Maki had no intention of just letting him go. She quickly grabbed her sword and blitzed towards the man, trying to stand up. In the blink of an eye, Maki was in front of him and cut off his arm, holding a lance.
The man was surprised by the speed displayed by Maki, which was even much faster than his precognition ability. In fact, it took him around two seconds to realise that his right hand had been neatly cut off. Once the pain reached his brain, he clenched his jaw to suppress his screams and clutched his cut right hand to ease the pain.
'She can move faster than my Mantra can do?! Has this bitch just been holding back all this time?'
Even though she had the upper hand, Maki didn’t immediately end the man's life. There were many things she wanted to get out of her opponent.
"As I thought, your ability to dodge attacks differs from reading the details in movements and trained reflexes, no?"
Maki was silent for a moment. She thought something was wrong with her words, so she corrected them.
"No, it definitely comes from the same root. You cultivated the ability to read your opponent's movements, but it yielded different results for some reason. Unfortunately, you rely too much on that ability and forget the basics of reading your opponent. That's why you fell for my deceptive moves."
Right after she took a breath, she asked the question that had always made her curious.
“Tell me, how do you do it?”
“You think I'll just tell you?” replied the man with a grin.
"Well, maybe we can renegotiate after I pull some of your nails."
Maki actually didn't like the rude methods of the yakuza. And it was just an attempt to scare him. Unfortunately, Maki heard a scream before she could continue her little negotiation.
“GAAAAH!! No, don't burn this ship!”
The girl with glasses in a ponytail immediately turned to the source of the sound. In the crow's nest, she saw Chopper cornered by the bird the man had previously ridden. Rather than being cornered, it was actually more like Chopper was worried that the bird would burn down their ship, considering that Chopper couldn’t do much since his opponent was flying.
The bird spat fire from its mouth without heeding Chopper's warning. The fire quickly burned down the crow's nest where Chopper was and the supporting pole. However, it was lucky that Maki saw it. She saved the fawn in time and landed on the front deck's railing with Chopper in her left hand.
“What’re you doing up there?” Maki asked.
“I just wanted to see your fight, but I didn't expect the bird to attack me when you were about to finish off its master.”
Hearing this testimony, Maki turned to the bird now flying towards the pilot.
'He deliberately attacked Chopper to distract me and then save his master? What an intelligent pet,' Maki thought as she prepared something in the bracelet under her jacket sleeve.
The giant bird flew again with its master on its back. The man still showed a disturbed expression after Maki cut off one of his arms. It could be seen by him looking at Maki sharply.
'I can't just go back, or I’ll lose my face before Enel-sama. Not until I can bring one of their heads.'
Even though his goal was clear, he didn't know how to defeat Maki. Even at his best, he stood no chance before the otherworldly girl. The only thing he could think of was to burn the ship down to teach them a lesson so he wouldn't return completely empty-handed.
However, Maki wouldn't sit back and let her opponent have the aerial advantage. The man saw Maki, who quickly jumped towards him. His ability to detect danger facing him didn’t respond in any way to Maki's actions, which made him astonished again. But he had learned from experience.
'She's not targeting me, but my bird?'
The man quickly steered his mount to avoid Maki. The bird's speed in avoiding her wasn't breakneck, but it was enough to avoid the impact. Unfortunately, one thing he didn't realise was that there was a thin object following Maki.
The man managed to get his bird to avoid Maki by a narrow margin, and she just passed the bird and continued upwards. However, when he thought Maki's threat had temporarily been avoided, he saw something hit his bird's neck. It was a very thin steel string but strong enough to bind a large-sized cured spirit.
After seeing that the string had successfully hit its target, Maki immediately twisted her body with an acrobatic movement to control the string. And in the end, the steel string entangled the giant bird's neck. For the final touch, Maki threw it onto land. The sound of the impact was quite loud, and dust flew everywhere. Meanwhile, Maki, who was free-falling, grabbed the tendrils around her and swung herself to where she threw the bird and its rider.
Steel strings were one of the equipment that Maki always carried everywhere. In fact, it was one of her favourite tools and one she often recommended to her colleagues, including Yuuji. On various occasions, these wire strings often play an essential role in her little tricks. And what Maki just showed was one of them.
The giant bird limped to its feet with the help of the pilot. However, before he had time to stand straight, a sword plunged firmly and deeply into its skull. It made the man widen his eyes, seeing the animal he saw just die right before his eyes.
"You... how could you just kill this animal like that, you monster," cursed the man.
Maki smiled while adjusting her glasses when she heard those words.
"You happily hunt my friends while you get angry when I kill your pet? Well, I like your hypocrisy. It makes me feel even better about beating you up."
A blush appeared on the man's ears when he was hit with the insinuation. Without replying to Maki's words, he lunged at the girl with the lance in his left hand. However, Maki easily avoided that and caught his hand. She twisted his body and slammed it using an aikido move. And, of course, she also stole the lance.
“Hey, come on. I’ve no reason to be crueller than this. Just tell me how you do that precognition thingy, and we're done," said Maki.
The man stared intently at Maki while breathing heavily.
“You thought I would tell you? It’s our nation's heritage, and only our God has the right to spread it. And you, you and your friends have violated the provisions God has set. You won’t be able to escape the heavenly punishment.”
Maki looked at the man with a flat look. She was fed up with the man's stubbornness. Moreover, people with such strong doctrines wouldn’t reveal a single word of the information they sought.
“Instead of expecting punishment for us, shouldn't you expect help for you? But well, I've often met people like you who always spout nonsense about their God.”
Maki paused her words.
"Just admit it, your God can't save you. Besides, if a God existed, he wouldn't live in a shabby place like this."
A flash appeared in the sky right after Maki said those provoking words. And at a very high speed, lightning fell massively and hit Maki precisely.
—OoOoO—
The roar of lightning sounded so loud that Zoro, Nami, and Robin could hear it. They also saw a blue flash that dazzled their eyes. What worried them even more was that the place where the lightning struck was right where their ship was located. Nami had seen that phenomenon before when she explored using the waver that Conis lent her. And seeing a similar one, Nami started to feel nervous.
"We have to go back immediately," said Nami.
Without waiting for a reply from her group, Nami just ran in the direction they came from. Zoro and Robin, without asking many questions, immediately followed her. Their distance from the ship wasn’t too far, but not that close. It took at least five minutes of running until they reached the cliff, where they landed after swinging from the ship.
What surprised them was the view around the cliff. Many trees were charred and burned over a large area. However, the fire seemed to have started to go out quickly because the oxygen for combustion above the clouds was very thin. But what caught their attention the most wasn’t that, but the sight of a lifeless body that was no longer recognisable because it was charred by fire.
Robin crossed her arms. And along with that, she cast the technique.
“Gran Fleur.”
Right after the technique was uttered, thousands of flower petals appeared around Robin, and they all quickly rushed towards the ship's railing. The petals come together to form a giant hand that was ready to be used to cross to the ship.
“Oh, I didn't know you could do this,” Zoro said.
Without further ado, they ran towards their ship. And right after Nami, the last person, had entered the deck, the giant hand turned back into thousands of flower petals and disappeared into nothingness.
When they arrived at the ship, they were greeted by the sight of a very messy ship. The main mast and several parts of the deck were burnt. Hollow floors. Even some of the railings were destroyed. Meanwhile, Chopper stood with a tense body and expression, while Maki just stood casually, folding her arms across her chest.
“See? The giant hand wasn’t from the enemy. Besides, their smell can even be smelled from a distance," said Maki.
"Well, but still, it was scary seeing the hand that suddenly appeared," Chopper complained as his body relaxed, "Besides, I didn't know you also had such a sharp sense of smell, Maki!"
Maki ignored the compliment. The reason was that she was also surprised by her new abilities. Ever since she came to this world and left the useless remnants of her cursed energy in her old world, many surprising things have been shown by her body. Apart from her speed, strength, and reflex that crazily increased, she also realised that her sense of smell, sight, and hearing also far exceeded human common sense.
In fact, she didn't expect that a bolt of lightning that directly hit her couldn't cause the slightest damage to her body. If anything, she just felt amused, and that didn't last long.
Maki still didn't understand and couldn't understand the changes completely. That was why she preferred to remain silent when she got a compliment rather than say something beyond her scope of thinking.
"What's going on here? Everything fell apart like a disaster. And what's with the damage in the forest over there?” Zoro asked.
Chopper swiftly answered the question.
“Someone attacked us. If you see the charred bodies there, you will understand what I mean.”
Zoro, Nami, and Robin simultaneously looked in the direction Chopper was pointing. That was where they found the charred body of the fawn he was referring to. After that, Zoro turned his gaze to Maki.
“That damage, did you do it?”
“How could I possibly do something like that?” Maki answered while shaking her head slowly.
“Yeah, that's not Maki. She was even struck by lightning just now.”
The three people who had just arrived were even surprised by Chopper's explanation. It was hard to believe it because Maki's body didn't have the slightest scratches. However, if you looked closely, Maki's clothes looked shabbier than before.
"I know it's hard to believe, but that's the truth," Chopper continued.
Believe it or not, Robin thought more important things needed to be discussed. That was why she looked at Maki. And the bespectacled girl realised the meaning of that gaze.
“I don't know who dropped the lightning. However, if I had to guess, I'm sure it's someone the locals call God.”
With her facial expression, Maki implied there was something else she wanted to say.
"That said, that man also said Luffy and the others were on the other side of the island to catch up with us. And the sacrifice test thingy was directed at them. So, it seems like they also claim to be priests."
Zoro smiled in relief at the news. At least he knew that his friends were also heading their way.
"Then we’ll wait for them," said the green-haired boy.
"We don't go to see them?" Nami asked.
Zoro shook his head slowly at the question.
"We don't know which road leads to them. Meanwhile, if this was indeed a test for them, they would have prepared a route to get here. So, they should catch up with us than for us all to play catch-up."
"Wow, I'm surprised you could come up with an idea like that," replied Nami, genuinely surprised.
“You talk as if I can't think rationally.”
Nami stuck out her tongue, blinked one eye, and tapped her head with her fist.
“Teehee~.”
While the people started talking about many things, Maki, who didn't speak much, heard something quite familiar to her ears. It was the sound of flapping wings like those of the man she previously fought. Maki looked up at the sky, looking for the source of the sound. Meanwhile, Zoro started to get curious when he saw Maki's movement.
"What?"
“I heard something flapping coming this way. It was similar to the previous one.”
After hearing that, Zoro shifted his gaze to where Maki was staring. Honestly, he heard nothing but a gust of wind. However, he must admit that the girl before him had abnormal senses. And sure enough, after a few seconds of waiting, a flying animal appeared behind the forest sky.
"Isn't that the sky knight?" Robin muttered.
As Robin said, it was the figure they met a few hours ago in the White Sea.
“Oh, it's you guys again!” said the figure.
The man who claimed to be a sky knight got off his mount, which resembled a flying horse.
"I saw a lightning strike and immediately rushed to the location. So, are you okay? Aren't any of you injured?" continued the old Gan Fall.
Everyone unanimously shook their heads at the question.
"If anything, the person who threw the lightning doesn't seem to hesitate to kill his own subordinate," said Nami, pointing to the unrecognisable body.
Gan Fall took off his helmet and put it on the floor. He walked towards the edge of the deck to get a clearer view. And as the orange-haired girl testified, she found a corpse that had been charred by lightning.
'That's really awful. Looks like that bastard's confession of having massacred his own people wasn't just nonsense,' thought the old man.
Gan Fall then turned around and looked at his guests.
"I know you guys have a lot of questions. But I hope you can hold it for a little longer. Your friends will be here soon. So, it would be better if we wait so I can answer it immediately."
Hearing that, Nami nodded and then looked at Maki and Chopper, who didn’t join them in exploring the Upper Yard.
“Yeah, I agree. I also have something I want to convey.”
—OoOoO—
As Gan Fall said, Luffy's group arrived a few minutes after they decided to wait on the ship. There were several complaints from Ussop when he saw the ship's poor condition. However, he couldn't help it. Due to the damage the ship suffered and to anticipate another attack on the ship, they finally decided to camp in the forest.
They now sit in a circle in a position they consider comfortable. But among them all, Gan Fall was currently the centre of attention.
"Hey, old man, tell me exactly what happened to this place and who is this so-called God?" asked Luffy, who opened the conversation.
"Yeah, and even though I already have a rough idea, I just want to ensure. What's with this land? Why is this so different from other Sky Island areas?" added Nami.
Gan Fall looked down, contemplating his answer to satisfy them.
"Perhaps I'll start from the origins of Upper Yard. This island is called the holy land. Land like this might be quite trivial in the Blue Sea, but not on Sky Island. Cloud island can be used to cultivate plants, but we can’t breed plants there. Greenery and soil aren’t things you commonly find on Sky Island.”
The old man took a sip of the warm drink that Sanji provided before he continued again.
“We call this vearth, something that is an admiration for us."
Gan Fall began to explain the origins of Upper Yard, which turned out to come from an island in the blue sea that was thrown into the sky island via a giant knock-up stream. The fertile land and green forests made all the Skypiea citizens think that the island was a blessing from heaven. As such, they sacred the place and consider it holy land.
Unfortunately, it wasn't just the island carried away from the blue sea. The native people who inhabited the island were also brought along. As a result, because it was the only suitable place to support civilisation and cultivation, Upper Yard became a disputed land fought over by the Skypieans and the natives of that land. Unfortunately, due to differences in technology in weapons of war, the Skypieans succeeded in occupying the Upper Yard and expelling the Aborigines.
“However, the people who call themselves the Shandia tribe are still fighting for this land to this day. Because of that, disputes still often occur."
Gan Fall then looked at Maki with a serious look.
“A rider you killed when you were still in the white-white sea was a Shandian. The leader of their liberation army was quite a stubborn person. So, be careful, young lady, for he may come to you for revenge.”
“It's fine. Just come to me. I'll teach them all a lesson at once,” Maki replied casually.
Rather than worrying about her fate as she might become a target for the entire tribe, Maki was more curious about something bothering her for a long time.
“Put that aside. A precognition ability used by people claiming to be priests, what’s that?” Maki then looked at Luffy, "Did you guys also meet similar opponents? Not just reading movements, but they really seem to be able to feel the presence and direction of attacks."
Sanji took a quick drag on his cigarette, then blew it roughly.
“Yeah, we met people like that. His combat power wasn't that great, but his precognition ability is truly troublesome.”
"That’s right! He seemed to know where we would hit even with his eyes closed," added Luffy.
Seeing the two people with him giving their testimony, Ussop also didn't want to lose and gave his own testimony.
“If I'm not mistaken, he called his technique a Mantra or something.”
All the information had been collected, and Gan Fall understood what they meant. No, even without complete information, he could still find out because the abilities they described were very well known on Sky Island.
“As you can see. Mantra is a precognition ability. We, the inhabitants of the sky, were born with genetics that are different from you because we have to survive in an extreme environment like this. Our bodies are physically stronger than most blue ocean residents. With special training, we can gain this precognition ability. However, sometimes there are special cases where someone will awaken the Mantra naturally."
“How did you train it?” Maki asked.
Gan Fall just shrugged his shoulders as a sign he didn't have a definite answer.
“Actually, what we did was normal training, nothing special.”
"So, you're saying that ability comes naturally with hard training?" Zoro asked, to which the old man nodded.
Maki, Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji were dissatisfied with the hanging answer. They were true fighters and experts in close-quarter combat. For people like them, the benefits offered by Mantra were very tempting. Could sense your opponent's attacks and their whereabouts was a huge advantage. Unfortunately, they didn't get any helpful information.
However, they could at least confirm one thing. Gan Fall said the people of Skypiea could use Mantra because they had stronger bodies as capital. But that was just his opinion. In other words, Mantra could be learned if the body could keep up with the load.
Meanwhile, Robin had been listening to their conversation. Based on these explanations, she drew a conclusion.
'Considering the descriptions, isn't this Mantra the same technique as Kenbunshoku no Haki?'
Their attention, originally divided, returned to one point after they heard a clapping sound from Nami.
"Okay, since you guys have talked about your business, it's my turn to tell you something very important."
Nami said these words while making a gesture to tell them to gather. They all complied with her request, even Maki gathered because, driven by curiosity, Nami opened the roll of paper she was carrying in her right hand.
“I combined the map Sanji-kun brought with the map Robin got in Jaya. And guess what? Upper Yard is part of Jaya Island that was thrown into the sky!"
Nami showed two maps that she combined into one. The shapes fit perfectly, as if the two maps had been puzzle pieces.
"Wait, if Upper Yard was Jaya in the past, does that mean…," Ussop trailed off because he wasn't sure.
But Nami nodded enthusiastically and completed the sentence.
"The ancient civilisation of Jaya, the Golden City, is somewhere on this island!”
—OoOoO—
After that, the conversation became more lively after they agreed to go on a search for ancient treasures. In fact, Maki, who always had high focus and dedication, was distracted and interested in that agenda. After all, young blood still flowed in her veins and hearing about the search for treasure disturbed her. After the consensus was reached, Gan Fall explained about God, which turned out to be just a title given to the leader of Skypiea.
To welcome the new mission, the Straw Hat Pirates held a bonfire party and danced lively even though they were in enemy territory. Maki wasn't used to that atmosphere but immensely enjoyed Sanji's dishes.
And here they were after camping one night. Returned to the ship with a surprised look as all the damage had been repaired in one night. It was a supernatural phenomenon that no one could explain. Therefore, the pirate group decided to move on to another discussion regarding the search for treasure. It was agreed that the group would be divided into two, a treasure hunter and ship guard teams.
Of the two teams, Maki went looking for treasure together with Luffy, Zoro, Chopper, and Robin.
“Hey, Zoro, where do you think you're going? West is this way!” shouted Luffy.
Maki could only put on a facepalm every time she found Zoro, who almost got lost every time.
“Is this guy that stupid? He really is hopeless.”
Robin smiled at those words, "Isn't that what makes this group more interesting?"
The black-haired woman saw Luffy, who also gave the wrong direction. Although, in this case Luffy just didn’t remember the map's contents, unlike Zoro, who was completely blind.
"Chopper, will you tell them we're going South?"
“Oh, sure.”
Chopper obeyed Robin's order and called the two idiots. They were back on the right path. And to cover up the awkwardness along the way, many jokes were said, although they all came from Luffy.
"Honestly, I'm quite surprised that you're on the treasure hunter team," said Robin to the girl beside her.
“Well, I must be honest that looking for treasure sounds fun."
Hearing those words, Luffy turned and walked backwards while looking at Maki.
"I know, right? It would be a shame to reject such a strong scent of adventure."
"Well, not really. I was just curious about this treasure-hunting thing."
"In fact, the sense of adventure arises because of the aura of adventure, Maki," replied Luffy with a big smile.
‘What did he even talk about?’ Maki thought.
The boy then turned back to the front, walking normally. He ran faster like he had found something new to play with. Ignoring the uniqueness of the young captain, Robin also gave Maki her views.
“You won't regret this adventure.”
Maki didn’t answer. She just stared at Robin silently for a while.
"Why?"
"This island is part of the Jaya mainland that disappeared. The oldest records about the Jaya civilisation are from at least 400 years ago. However, when I examined the rocks around the altar, this civilisation should be much older than that.”
"So?" Maki asked.
"If lucky, we might find a poneglyph or something else.”
Maki's eyes widened when she heard that hypothesis. However, she couldn't let herself be lulled by that.
“It's just a possibility, isn't it?” asked the bespectacled girl.
Robin then looked at Maki with her smiling mouth and eyes.
"Do you want to bet?"
Maki recoiled a little at that confidence. Even though what Robin said about the existence of poneglyphs on this island was only a hypothesis, a strong belief radiated from all the cells of her body. It showed that the woman wasn’t afraid of being wrong in her judgment. Or rather, it was as if Robin knew there was no room for error in her intuition.
‘She’s not that strong. Even the old me could defeat her. But her smile and confidence gave me goosebumps. It almost reminds me of that idiot Satoru.'
Before Maki could reply to Robin's challenge, she felt the ground shake slightly and the hissing sound of a reptile. Not only her but everyone there also noticed the oddity.
Everyone turned around to confirm what was actually chasing them. However, everyone's eyes were wide, and their mouths were agape, at a loss for words when they saw what was coming towards them.
“It looks like a python. But judging from the shape of the fangs, there’s a big possibility that the snake is venomous," said Robin.
Without taking her eyes off the snake, Maki responded to Robin.
"You also know about snakes?"
"I previously lived in a desert area for several years and learned a lot about them during my time," Robin replied.
Meanwhile, Luffy was still Luffy as usual. Even when faced with the strangest creatures, he felt joy instead of fear.
“Oh!! I didn't know snakes could grow that big! Moreover, a python has venom? Doesn't that sound dangerous? Hahaha!" He said with an explosive laugh.
"Of course’ a snake can't possibly grow that big," Zoro quickly interjected, "Unless it's a sea king or something."
“Sea king… it's called sea king even though it lives on land?” asked an astonished Chopper.
Robin laughed softly at this innocence before answering Chopper's question.
"The trees in this forest are also much larger in size. If that's the case, the environments on Sky Island may greatly influence the creatures from below."
What they had been discussing all this time was a giant blue snake with fangs that were even bigger than their ship's masts. Being stared at by the little ants, the snake glared at them in return. Thinking its stealth strategy had failed, the snake lunged at them quickly.
“He's coming!”
With Luffy's signal, the entire team immediately dodged and scattered in all directions to confuse the snake. People with high mobility, like Maki, Luffy, and Zoro, could easily jump to the highest tree branch to avoid the attack. Meanwhile, Chopper and Robin had to rely on their devil fruit abilities to help them escape.
Maki grabbed the tendrils hanging on a branch in a "U" shape. She spun upwards around the vines with a slight push to provide a centrifugal effect. After feeling like she had gained enough momentum, Maki took advantage of the centrifugal effect, pushing her to jump into a tree to become a victim of the giant snake's attack.
'I never learned about snake venom. But seeing how it emits a gas-like corrosion fluid, even a fool would know it has deadly venom,' Maki thought.
The snake looked up and found Maki. However, the giant snake seemed to have high intelligence. After his first failed attempt, he immediately could recognise figures who had the potential to be easy prey. And in the book, Maki didn’t fall into that category.
However, the snake wasn’t as stupid as they thought. If he attacked Chopper and Robin directly, it would only open another opening. Because of that, he went on a rampage, attacking blindly while maintaining distance from his potential targets.
Maki prepared to draw her sword but was unsure whether to attack it. The reason was that the snake's size was too large for her capacity. Even with the zero-cursed energy body she got after coming to this world, it wasn’t like she could unleash energy slashes like Zoro. As such, even though physically she believed she wasn’t inferior to Zoro or even Luffy, she had doubts about her effectiveness against giant creatures.
Maki put her sword back into the sheath. Part of it was because of her doubts, but another reason was that she saw Robin cornered by the snake. For that reason, Maki didn't hesitate and just dashed off to save Robin. She managed to reach and carry the woman like an uncle carrying a sack of rice.
Maki landed on a branch while looking back.
'I didn't see any sign of them. Are we separated?'
The snake was still trying to chase her. That made Maki inevitably have to move. Robin, now being carried on the girl's shoulder, realised her intentions and gently hit the girl on the back to give her a sign.
"Wait, Maki, if we really have to run, it's best to return to the starting point."
"Copy that," Maki replied briefly.
"And please, not so fas—."
Robin's sentence was cut short when she suddenly felt extraordinary wind friction and a sway caused by Maki jumping from one branch to another. And because of this effect, Robin's stomach, which was previously full after breakfast, now felt nauseous.
—To Be Continued—
Author Note: Hello, I know there might not be many people waiting for this fic, but I'm happy to be able to upload this chapter. Well, there's not much to discuss. The Maki vs Shura fight was just a one-sided massacre. Shura's spell wasn't strong enough to follow Maki's movements. If it wasn't for Maki who wanted to test the extent of Shura's Mantra, she could have finished him jusright away. However, here Maki started to get piqued to learn Mantra after she saw it for herself. This would also be the tap that opened Maki's mind to the possibility of techniques from this world that she could learn.
Meanwhile, for Maki that still fine even though she was hit by Enel's lightning. Well, if you look at the extra content in JJK vol.24, you will see that Maki didn't receive the slightest damage when hit by the lightning rain from Meguna's Nue. So, I thought that Maki would be fine when she received Enel's lightning. Of course, I think there is a certain limit to that resistance.
OK, that's all from me. The next update is Oregairu x JJK. See you in two weeks.
Comments
Rose Smith
I honestly love this crossover. I like how long the chapters are and I like how you keep them true to their personalities. Honestly cannot wait. Thanks for this chapter :)
