-7 years later, Alabasta, Nanohana-
Nanohana was a port-town in south-east Alabasta, and also the central port city that handled the most important and exports in all of Alabasta.
It was also famous for its perfume. Which carried very strong scents for those who weren't used to them. In addition to that, Jin, now Eiji Yamamoto, had been occupying the city for the past seven years.
Nanohana resembled a typical middle-eastern desert town, that followed the conventions of the Islamic culture. And as expected of the town, it had docks where ships can load or unload cargo.
As it is the entrance to Alabasta, it was a popular target for pirate attacks, and even more so in times of war.
And as one would think, just like the rest of the kingdom, Nanohana is indeed a humid place. However, not at the level of the other cities.
In this lifetime, Eiji was an orphan.
It took him quite a long time to adapt to his new surroundings. He was slightly fearful upon reincarnating. This world wasn't like his old one. The same rules, morals, and logic didn't apply here. It was like being tossed in a den full of dangerous beasts.
He learned to slowly adjust with the culture, habits, and festivities the people had. It also turned out, the worlds roots ran far deeper than he thought they did. The anime/manga missed out on my many things, that he later came to find out about and study.
But it was a lie to say he had uncovered everything there was to know about the world, he hadn't even scratched the surface.
Even still, pirates regularly attacked Nanohana, in addition to the rest of the world.
So why did he choose this world? Precisely because of the danger.
Eiji was a man who always pushed his limits. Whether it was in the gym physically or widening his knowledge on subjects that were crucial to his life. And you could say with the opportunities this world provided, he would be able to go far above what he was ever capable of on earth.
The birds sung their song as the sun began to rise and take its rightful place in the blue skies. In SHINE orphanage, all of the children hurried and changed into their outfits for the day, after they made their beds.
The children hurried their footsteps down the long stairs, or god knows what the matron would give them as punishment for being late. She was a strict person, but all of the them loved her unconditionally.
How could they not? She had looked after them for so many years, without so much as a complaint, even if she knew the orphanage struggles increased with the more people that were brought in. She was the mother they never had.
The least they could do was follow the guidelines and rules that were put in place. If not for their sakes, then it was for hers.
Eiji didn't care for any of that. He was one of the few children the matron didn't know what to do with.
Whenever she saw him, he was always alone. Whether they were eating breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Even when they went out to play. The kids tended to stay away from him, and he seemed satisfied about that.
The reason for that was simple, Eiji didn't know how to interact with children, and he would rather not either. Children were loud, energetic, and often times... crybabies.
'I'd rather not deal with all that.'
However the matron intended to change that today. She needed to figure out what was wrong, so Eiji could join the other children, and finally act how a child his age should act.
Eiji exited his room. He wore an all black attire, that coupled with his long black hair and soulless eyes, gave him a gloomy look. Unlike the rest of the kids, he didn't have a partner who wanted to bunk with him.
But that was fine, because then nobody would be there to interrupt him with the things he had been experimenting come night time.
He focused his gaze to where he heard the clack of heavy boots. An old woman whos grey hairs were tied in a pony tail stopped him from further proceeding. "Hold it right there, young man!"
She was more on the chubby side, and a bit taller than the average person in the world.
Eiji recognized her immediately as the matron of the orphanage.
"Is there something you need ma'am?" Eiji asked, still unsure of the reason he was stopped.
Seeing the curious face of the boy before her, the matron couldn't help but squint her eyes. 'Why does he act as if everythings fine?' In her eyes, Eiji dealt with the pain behind closed doors, and pretended as if he wasn't bothered with his current situation.
After all, there is no way a child just barely seven years old, wouldn't want to be included with other children and make friends. And perhaps she was right, but Eiji was a reincarnate, and he had no intention to make friends.
She knelt to slightly above his height. She lightly stroked his hair and stared deep into his onyx eyes, trying to sense any pain within them. "Is there anything that you would like to talk to me about Eiji?"
"...No." Eiji raised an eyebrow. "Did something happen?"
The matron sighed a deep sigh. Eiji was doing a great job of keeping up his tough act. But she could recognize a gaze like his from anywhere, a gaze that held hurt, loss, and... loneliness.
He gave her a familiar feeling to her old self. "I've been watching you for a while now... and noticed you don't get along with the other children. Do you mind telling me why?"
'Ah, so that was the reason.'
Eiji observed over the matron. From her expression, he could tell that she didn't put on an act to just seem nice, and was actually concerned about his wellbeing. However, it seems that she had gotten the wrong idea about him.
"Don't worry about me, I just prefer my space," He replied.
The matron still looked on suspiciously, but let it be. If she pushed on anymore, it could have the adverse effect, and instead make him push them away further.
She couldn't have that.
But she hoped one day, that he will be able to open up his heart, because it wasn't healthy to keep so much bottled up. Because it could destroy him from the inside when he got older.
"Alright. If you ever have anything you need to talk about, I'll always be here for you okay?"
Eiji nodded and continued on with his day.
Breakfast was relatively normal, everyone was seated at long tables and would converse with each other, talking about what kids talked about. Eiji however, would eat his food in peace, clear in the back.
His hand wrapped around his spoon as he dug into his eggs. However, looking closer, his hand had not actually touched the spoon.
He concentrated on the spoon in his hand, and followed the motion, so as to make it look normal. The spoon shook slightly, but for the most part, it stayed still as he finished eating.
There was nothing planned for the day, so the kids were given free reign. So Eiji up and left the orphanage, and headed to his favorite spot.
Nanohana library, it was located in the middle of the small city.
At this time of day, many people were already awake. Despite its small size, Nanohana was always bustling with people during the morning and night, because of its business, imports, and exports.
"Ah Eiji, I see you are here again." A guard said.
"Yeah."
Eiji finally reached the entrance to the library that was the size of a modern US school, but it's design more like the White House.
It was a brown building white a few strands of black that went down its size, and a large symbol of an eagle near its triangular roof.
It was guarded by two well dressed young men. Despite being a public place, they didn't let just anyone in.
The first time Eiji went there he was denied entrance until he later came back with paperwork to prove that he was a citizen. From then on, he continued to go day after day, and eventually managed to make acquaintance with the guards.
"Have fun in there!"
"You too Satoshi-San."
Eiji I took some air as he finally entered the spacious library. Not many people were there in the morning, or any time of the day for that matter. Because people were so busy, they didn't have much time to enjoy themselves, and children his age were usually more interested in other things.
Scanning every shelf, Eiji would grab whatever interested him.
He briefly grabbed a historical book on Alabasta, and put it back moments later. He flipped through the pages, almost like he hadn't even read it.
He found another book on psychology, and did the same. He read at a superhuman speed.
Each time he picked up a book, his eyes would briefly turn scarlet, with two tomoe spinning around his pupil.
Because of his particular ability, he was granted an eidetic memory, and could perceive things far faster than normal people.
He practically had his own library of books on different subjects in his mind, from philosophy to navigation, and many more.
It was great for him because he never had to worry about forgetting anything, or relying on someone else for something.
He was in the library for a couple of hours, before he decided it was time to leave. However, a particular figure caught his eyes.
The figure was small, slightly taller than himself. They sported a coat to large for their body. Eiji changed his eyes scarlet momentarily to see the petite face that was hidden under the hood.
He noticed strands of hair the color of a cloudless sky, and a face that would make you want to pinch her. Yes, it was a her, there was no doubt about it.
As they passed each other, he got a closer look, as did the girl. They locked eyes for a moment. She was the first to break contact with a slight blush, and bury herself into a pile of books in an inconspicuous corner of the library.
Eijis face was stoic as he left the library. But his eyes held a clear curiosity and interest.
'Who would have thought I'd meet a pivotal character so soon.'