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Five days have passed since I ate my devil fruit, and we have reached Spider Miles. I spent the first day practicing changing the density of cannonballs until I got the hang of it, thanks to the ungodly amount of ammunition we took from the marines.
I spent the second day practicing changing the density of my sword Triton, increasing its weight when I swing it down, or decreasing its weight to move it more quickly.
My earlier practice with the cannonballs came in handy, and I figured that pretty quickly as well. Still, a problem did come up, and it was the unfamiliar shape of Triton as I was used to swinging my old Katana Sotiri, causing the swordsmanship to be a little less effective, but it's nothing a good week of practice won't fix.
We reached Spider Miles on the third day, and I began experimenting with decreasing Triton's density to where it would phase through solid objects. I did that by setting up two pieces of wood on top of each other with a gap between them and trying to cut the lower one without scratching the one at the top.
It took me the entirety of the third and fourth day to get the hang of it, but it was well worth it. Merely imagining someone's face when they try to block Triton only for its blade to phase through their defense is making me cackle like a madman.
And so, I finally had the confidence to try changing my own density after learning to change other things' density to a satisfactory level. Still, I did it safely, increasing the density of my skin first to make it more durable and resistant to damage.
I learned that after only an hour or so of trying, and I even had the confidence to take on Laffite's new attack, which was a fiery beam shot from the tip of his cane by mixing Shigan, my impact fist, and the weird technique Kumadori used to create fireballs. (Author's note: Imagine special beam cannon from dragon ball, but fiery instead, and not as destructive.)
I didn't even need Haki to tank the damn thing, but my skin merely inured the penetrative force of the attack with my fire resistance cyber ware taking care of the heat aspect.
On the fifth day, I tried increasing the density of my muscles to make them and, by extension, myself physically stronger. Still, it was easier said than done, but I digress.
Spider Miles was a port town with a waste processing facility, making it the hellhole the anime showed, and then some, with its many factories that were constantly releasing smoke from their chimneys.
Unsurprisingly, it was a breeding ground for corruption and crime, thanks to the influence of the Donquixote pirates who made their headquarters here before, no doubt.
In truth, I did not want to stay on this godforsaken island for even a minute, but I have to endure it for now until Laffite can find the doctor I want to recruit.
That is why we are here, after all, as this place is has a heavy underground presence, and it's the perfect place to look for someone. Still, my patience for this place is running lower and lower with each passing minute, and I might end up giving up on finding Law's exact location and going to Swallow island to scour every inch of it to locate him.
(Author's note: For those of you who don't know or have forgotten, Law ended up on swallow island after Corazon died.)
'Might as well go out and see if this horrid place has anything decent to offer to make my stay here a little more bearable,' I think to myself as I stop my training with a sigh, reverting my muscles to their normal state before I increased their density.
"I'm heading out," I remark in a casual tone, putting on my coat and sunglasses. "Call me if something comes up," I conclude, jumping off the back pearl's railings and into the port.
'This shitty town looks even more awful up close,' I think with a frown, walking through the town's streets that were full of garbage and litter.
My frown deepens as I look at the colossal mountains of junk and scrap that people stacked on the beach in piles. "Hmm?" I hum as I look down on a kid who suddenly pumped into me, picking him up by the scruff of his shirt.
"You're fifty years early to try to pick-pocket me, kid," I say with a smile as I raise him so that our eyes are on the same level. "I don't know what you're talking about," the kid said, crossing his arms in front of his chest while stubbornly glaring at me.
I was about to say something else, but I stopped as I noticed the bruises on the kid's arms and body that his dirty, tattered shirt barely covered. "Who did this to you?" I ask with a frown, gesturing towards the bruises.
"No one! I tripped down and fell," the kid quickly exclaimed, trying to cover his bruises in visible panic. "I see, and what's your name, by the way?" I ask in a calm tone, making no comment about his glaring lie.
"Why should I tell you my name? Are you a child molester or something, old man?" the kid said, continuously glaring at me.
"Now listen here, you little shit," I say, with a vein bulging on my forehead. "I'll have you know that I'm only sixteen, and I have absolutely no interest in children," I add, flicking him on the forehead.
"I only like mature women, alright?" I ask, glaring at the little shit as he rubs his forehead in pain. "So you're a pervert with mom issues," the little shit said, removing his hands from his forehead to glare at me yet again.
'I really want to punch this kid in the face right now,' I think to myself with an exasperated sigh. "How about this? Tell me your name and show me around here, and I'll give you this," I remark, waving a ten thousand Berry note in his face.
"My name is Charles," he said, his eyes focused on the money, causing me to drop him into the ground, and instantly put the Berry note back in my pocket as Charles tried to reach for it.
"Show me around the town first, and then it will be yours," I say while shrugging my shoulders. "There's nothing to see here but garbage, so just look around you and give me my money," Charles replies while pointing at the garbage littering the surrounding roads.
"As I said, show me around the town, and you'll get the money," I state, firmly shaking my head. "But there is literally nothing to see except garbage," Charles replies stubbornly.
"Then show me the different types of garbage around the town," I reply, smiling as his eyes begin to twitch in annoyance. "Have it your way, old man," Charles remarks in an annoyed tone, turning around and gesturing for me to follow him.
Charles and I then move on to tour Spider Miles town, and I have to say that the tour did no favors to my opinions of this place. Not only is the air itself tainted, but the people themselves are no different.
Starvation, poverty, garbage and even more garbage is the only thing to be found or seen in this place with the citizens being more than willing to slit each other's throats over a gold coin.
'I came here expecting the worst, but this place surpassed even my expectation,' I think to myself with a sigh, my eyes trained on Charles's back. 'This is the same place where the town's people murdered Doflamingo's parents, even though they did nothing wrong,'
"Hey, kid," I remark with a sigh. "That's enough, here take it," I say, throwing the ten thousand Berry note to him.
"You should use the money to get out of this hell hole," I say whole looking him in the eye. "Go out to the sea or another island," I add in a grave voice.
"It doesn't even matter where you go. Anywhere is better than this place," I concluded, turning around and leaving. 'It doesn't matter if Laffite ends up finding something or not. We're going to leave this place as soon as he comes back before I end up doing something I'll later regret,' I think to myself as I walk away from Charles, who quickly hides the money in his clothes without replying as he turns to leave as well.
Suddenly, a sound of screaming interrupts my thought chain, causing me to frown as I stop in place, leaning on a wall to light a cigarette, focusing on my ears, and trying to understand what is happening.