Mikita, Honey, Robin, Nojiko, Vivi, Conis, Raki, and Hina made their way back to the Miss Love Duck.
"Should we have waited for Ben and the others?" Vivi asked, glancing back with a hint of worry.
"Princess just wants to be with Ben," Nojiko teased.
"Nojiko!" Vivi pouted, her cheeks flushing slightly. "I'm just concerned about splitting up a bit," she added.
"Captain will get worried about his princess at this rate," Robin added. They all giggled.
Mikita chuckled softly. "They're waiting for Maya to be ready, and they'll be taking a different route eventually," she replied.
Honey nodded. "Ben trusted our strength," she added.
"We don't know exactly where they are. So it's best we get moving," Raki added,
"We should trust them to handle things on their end," Conis chimed in, her tone gentle but firm. "We have our own part to play, " she added. Conis thought this was the first time their Captain had trusted her and given her a task.
"Hina believes they're on the coast. We should head there," Hina suggested.
The group nodded in unison. The dense jungle began to thin, revealing the familiar sight of the Miss Love Duck anchored nearby. They saw the drawbridge down and walked towards it. They boarded the Miss Love Duck. HQ greeted them.
"Ben will arrive a bit later, we have split into groups," Nojiko said.
"You must be the new harem member, welcome, I am HQ," HQ said to Hina.
"Hina, has not joined the crew," Hina replied. She looked at HQ, who had Honey`s face however she looked like a demon, with her wings, tail and horn. She thought this must be a devil fruit and her twin sister.
HQ nodded. "Let's go to the Weapon`s room and get armed," Mikita said. At that moment, Kaya and Marianne came up from the Bridge.
"Perfect timing," Robin said.
Marianne and Kaya looked puzzled. "We can explain along the way," Vivi added.
They made their way to the Weapon`s Room on the Third Floor. Kaya and Marianne understood the situation and agreed to the plan but not before Kaya called Ben a pervert.
They got to the Weapon`s Room and walked around. Mikita picked up the Veridian Enigma, the long barrel pistol they stole from that Neo-Marine. "This will do," she commented.
"It does suit you," Raki replied as she picked up the Impact Dial and Axe Dial.
"No, other weapons for you?" Mikita asked.
"No, Captain has given me a Devil Fruit, I will try to use it," Raki responded.
"You're already doing great with it," Vivi said as she picked up the Gero Gero Gun. "I still can't use mine properly," she admitted, her fingers tracing the weapon's barrel. "But I know I will soon. Ben trusts me," she added.
Nojiko giggled, her eyes twinkling. "He sure does," she chimed in. "And so do we," she added with a reassuring smile. She was well aware of Vivi's latent power.
"Why don't you take the shield?" Kaya suggested.
"Marianne should grab one too, just in case," Mikita said, her gaze shifting between Vivi and Marianne. "You two aren't the weakest links, but everyone else has Devil Fruit abilities," she clarified.
"Shields?" Hina asked, intrigued.
Robin stepped forward, holding one up. "A one-time use to protect against life-threatening attacks. It has a long recharge time, but it's incredibly useful," she said.
Hina nodded. She found their openness and willingness to share their strategies with her intriguing and strange. They do know Hina has not joined, has she, she wondered.
Robin looked. Her brain and logic was telling her that Hina was a Marine, their enemy, she could betray them however she thought of Ben and Hina and the crew and it all made sense. Her heart was saying it was fine but her brain was not. It was an odd emotion.
"We get it," Marianne replied as she picked up the Yellow Gun. "Ben always says it's better to be safe than sorry," she added.
"Captain doesn't want his princess or cutie getting hurt," Robin teased with a sly smile, her eyes flicking between Vivi and Marianne.
The group erupted into light-hearted giggles. Honey nodded. Conis glanced around at the array of weapons, her eyes widening slightly.
"Don't be shy," Nojiko encouraged.
"Feel free to pick anything you like," Kaya added with a smile. "Ben says there are no limits," she added.
"You have a flame on your back," Hina observed, her eyes narrowing slightly as she pointed to the fire flickering on Conis's back.
"It's my Devil Fruit power," Conis explained. She spotted the Heat Javelin used by the priest nearby. "I'll take this," she said as she held the handle.
"I did not like that guy," Kaya added.She thought of Shura hurting Usopp, her best friend.
"Neither did I," Vivi agreed. Vivi thought he was not a good man.
"Honey, don't you need anything?" Mikita asked, glancing over at her.
"No, I'm okay," Honey replied with a serene smile. "My devil fruit is versatile," she added.
"I'm fine too," Nojiko chimed in. "My Devil Fruit is good for long and short ranges," she also added.
"Same here," Kaya added. "I prefer using my Devil Fruit abilities," she continued.
Robin's lips curved into a mischievous smile. "I enjoy feeling their life drain away," she said, her voice low and almost seductive.
Marianne and Honey's eyes widened in shock. For a brief moment, Hina's mind flashed to Robin's nickname, Devil Child.
"She's just joking," Nojiko quickly clarified.
"She has a different sense of humor," Honey chimed in. Hina arched an eyebrow but said nothing.
"Hina, do you need anything?" Mikita asked, turning her attention to her.
"Hina is okay as well," she replied, as she looked around. "I trust in my own skills," she added.
"Ben said, we are taking Pau Ra Pa?" Vivi asked.
"Yes, we are so we have a bit more firepower," Mikita replied.
"What is Pau Ra Pa?" Hina asked.
"She is a beautiful sister, like Lexie," Mariannne said.
"Are we all done here?" Nojiko asked.
They all said yes and nodded.
"Let's take Pau Ra Pa out," Mikita remarked.
They all headed to the Third Floor. Hina was surprised to see such a ship, the Miss Love Duck was big and very advanced.
"There she is," Marianne pointed out. Hina saw a 20ft tall soft pink robot. It had a pink chest and a flat head with two large square pink eyes. The broad chest had tubes on them resembling nipples. The back of the robot had two holes pointing downwards. Its right hand was a large pink sword. Its left hand was a large cannon.
Hina eyes widened. "This is," Hina said.
"Very impressive," Mikita remarked as she stole Hina`s word. "This should give us more than enough firepower for what's coming," she added.
"And she can fly," Vivi added with a grin.
Honey giggled softly. "It was both terrifying and thrilling," she said.
"The best kind of excitement," Robin added, finishing Honey's sentence with a knowing smile.
Hina thought there were pirates who would use technology however this was different. The name Vegapunk came to her mind however she knew he could do better. However, she wondered who Ben was and why he had this. Her heart skipped a beat, thinking about him.
"Let's go," Mikita stated.