Raphael: <>
System: []
******
It had been a week since Luffy and Uta had departed from Shells Town, leisurely sailing toward Orange Town.
During this time, Raphael had already finished analyzing and integrating one of the Three Den Den Mushi that Uta had stolen from the Shells Town Marine base into Luffy's smartphone. Now, thanks to Raphael's efforts, Luffy could use his phone to contact other Den Den Mushi, allowing him to mimic the call function from their previous world.
Now with a week's worth of food stored neatly in his inventory and no immediate threat or exciting event in sight, Luffy found himself lazing about on the boat. His arms were folded behind his head, eyes half-lidded as he stared at the clear blue sky. Boredom was slowly creeping in, causing him to stretch out and yawn every so often.
Suddenly, a thought struck him like a bolt of lightning, causing him to sit up abruptly, eyes wide with realization.
"I'm an idiot!" he shouted, startling Uta, who glanced over with a confused expression.
'How could I forget?!' Luffy cursed himself mentally. 'I completely forgot about the two achievements I got for beating Morgan!'
Shaking off his embarrassment, he quickly pulled up his system interface to check the rewards he'd received for defeating Captain Axe-Hand Morgan.
[Axe Hand Slayer - The achievement is granted to an individual who has defeated the Tyrant Marine Captain 'Axe-Hand' Morgan!
Reward: 1000 points]
[The Liberator Ⅰ - The achievement is granted to the individual who has liberated or helped to liberate a small town.
Reward: 1000 points]
A grin spread across Luffy's face. 'Two thousand points! That means two rolls!' He rubbed his hands together, eyes gleaming with anticipation. Opening up the points menu, he saw his current balance: 3010 points. 'Even better! I've got enough for three rolls thanks to those extra 700 points from the [And the Journey Begins!] achievement!'
Without wasting another second, Luffy eagerly initiated the first roll.
[Congratulations! Elektra's Twin Sai received!]
Luffy sighed as the weapon materialized in his inventory. It wasn't useless, but it wasn't exactly what he needed either. 'Well, at least it's not a total dud,' he thought, trying to stay positive. 'I can always keep it for a collection or maybe find some use for it later.'
He quickly brushed aside his mild disappointment and went for the second roll.
[Congratulations! Chloranthy Ring x 1 received!]
As soon as Luffy read the name of the second reward, his eyes widened in surprise. 'Is this what I think it is?' he thought, quickly examining the ring.
[Chloranthy Ring - The Chloranthy Ring is an artifact from the Dark Souls series. According to lore, this ancient ring is named for its decorative green blossom, but its luster has long faded.
Effect: Increases stamina recovery and resiliency recovery speed by 30% ]
"Yes!" Luffy practically shouted, pumping his fist into the air. His sudden outburst drew Uta's attention.
"Luffy?" Uta raised an eyebrow at his excitement.
"Don't worry, I'll tell you later!" he called back, too engrossed in his new prize to explain just yet.
Reaching into his inventory, Luffy carefully pulled out the Chloranthy Ring. The old artifact looked simple yet captivating—a circular band adorned with green gemstones that formed a delicate floral pattern. At the center sat a faded, lusterless pearl, its once vibrant shine long gone. Despite its age, the ring radiated a subtle energy.
After admiring the ring for a moment longer, Luffy slipped it onto his finger, immediately feeling its effects.
'This is huge!' Luffy thought, grinning wide. 'My Diamondhead abilities eat away my stamina while using them, so having equipment that increases my stamina recovery is a huge find,' he thought. 'And having a resiliency recovery on top of that is a huge plus in itself since full body transformation will eat away my resiliency instead of stamina.'
Then, curbing his excitement a little, he moved on to the next and final roll of the day. However, knowing his system, he didn't hold out much hope for any good reward. And if he was being honest, he was already satisfied with the ring, so without holding any greed in his mind, he just did the roll.
However, the moment the name of the reward flashed across the screen, his eyes widened, and he shot up from where he sat.
"This...!" Luffy's grin stretched wider than even before. "Uta! Get over here, quick!"
Hearing the urgency in his voice, Uta rushed over with a serious expression, scanning their surroundings for threats. "Luffy, what is it? Did you spot an enemy?!"
"Nah, nothing like that," Luffy said, waving off her concern. "Sorry for yelling, I shouldn't have freaked you out." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Anyway, do you remember when I told you I'd give you something good once my Devil Fruit gave me something suitable for you?"
"Yeah, but you already gave me this outfit, didn't you?" Uta raised an eyebrow, gesturing to the clothes she was wearing, a sleek, practical outfit gifted to her not long ago.
Luffy grinned wider. "Who said that offer was one-time only? I got something else I think you'll like." He reached into his inventory and pulled out a sleek, black Devil Fruit, its surface covered in intricate, mechanical golden lines. He offered it to her with a knowing smile.
"A Devil Fruit?" Uta blinked in surprise. Her voice was hesitant, uncertainty clear on her face. "I don't know about this one, Luffy. Eating one is a huge commitment, Luffy. You know that."
"No, no, this Devil Fruit is not like the ones you find in the world," Luffy reassured her. "This one here is created by my Devil Fruit, which does not take away your ability to swim nor does it stop you from eating multiple of them."
"Multiple Devil Fruits..." Uta repeated those words and widened her eyes as she realized something. "Your ability to get these random things as well as those crystal thingy is due to this?"
"Yep!" Luffy nodded with a grin. Then his grin faded, replaced with a more serious expression. "Uta, you know I'd never do anything to harm you, right?"
"Of course, Luffy," Uta replied without hesitation, her trust in him absolute. She looked at the fruit in his hands, contemplating it for a moment before finally taking it. "But I swear, if I turn into some stupid animal, you're going to be the first thing I eat."
Luffy laughed, but Uta remained serious as she took a bite of the fruit. Surprisingly, it didn't taste as terrible as the legends said, but before she could think too much about it, a strange tingling sensation coursed through her left arm. Her arm began to glow faintly, the light outlining intricate patterns.
When the glow faded, Uta's left arm was covered in golden mechanical lines that looked almost like circuits integrated into her skin. Her palm had two concentric circles, resembling a high-tech mechanism.
Uta stared at her hand with wide eyes and then turned towards Luffy, asking, "Luffy, what is-" Her words were cut off when suddenly the knowledge about her new powers and the memories of the person to whom these powers originally belonged to filled her head. Once the process was done, Uta was panting with her hands on her knees. "Damn, this is one hell of a ruthless guy," Uta muttered to herself.
After a moment to process it all, Uta's shock turned to exhilaration. She threw her arms around Luffy, pulling him into a tight hug. "Luffy, thank you so much!" She kissed him on the cheek, tightening the hug even more.
Luffy laughed with her, returning the hug. He understood her reaction perfectly—after all, the Devil Fruit he had given her wasn't just any fruit. The reward he'd received from his third roll was a [Custom Devil Fruit: Kyara Kyara no Mi, Model: Chamber], based on the abilities of the expert French marksman from Valorant, Chamber.
If he were being honest, Luffy had been tempted to eat the fruit himself. But in the end, he realized that he couldn't do everything on his own. Building a strong crew would only strengthen him in the long run, and a markswoman like Uta was the perfect fit for this power.
"Luffy!" Uta declared with renewed determination, her eyes gleaming. "We're stopping at the next island we see. Orange Town can wait—I need to test out these new powers as soon as possible."
Luffy couldn't help but chuckle at her enthusiasm. "Your wish is my command, my lady," he said with an exaggerated bow, causing both of them to burst out laughing.
******
The next day, somewhere around noon, Luffy and Uta finally managed to spot a small uninhabited island and immediately steered their boat toward it.
Once they had anchored the boat securely, they jumped ashore, eager to test Uta's new powers.
"Alright, Uta, here's the plan," Luffy said, clapping his hands. "Show me everything you've got with those new powers, and then we can talk about how best to use them, and if there's anything that needs tweaking."
"Got it," Uta replied, stretching out her limbs to loosen up.
'Raphael, give me a detailed analysis of her abilities as she uses them,' Luffy instructed internally.
"Ok, so I've got four abilities from that Devil Fruit," Uta explained. "One is a touch-based status effect, one is short-range teleportation, and the other two are for weapon materialization."
Luffy nodded, listening carefully. "Sounds good. Let's start with the status effect and teleportation before we dive into the weapons."
"Sure," Uta said and held up her left hand, palm open towards Luffy's face. "This is the first one," she explained, as the two concentric circles on her palm began glowing with a faint purple hue. Without warning, she reached forward and tapped Luffy.
The moment her hand touched him, Luffy's body felt like it was submerged in thick syrup—his movements were drastically slowed down, but only for a couple of seconds. He blinked as he regained control, feeling a strange aftereffect.
"That was… weird," Luffy admitted, shaking off the sluggish sensation.
"Right? It's called Trademark Touch. I can slow anything I touch for a couple of seconds," Uta explained with a grin, as a detailed explanation of the ability appeared in Luffy's mind.
[Trademark Touch - Trademark Touch is a modified version of Trademark Slow Trap. This ability allows the user to slow down any individual with the touch of their palm for 2 seconds. It has a cooldown time of 30 seconds after each use.]
They experimented with it a bit more, Uta tagging Luffy at different moments as they brainstormed how it could be used effectively in combat. The short duration seemed limiting, but in the heat of battle, a well-timed slow could be devastating. With that out of the way, they moved on to the next ability.
"Okay, so this next one is really cool, watch this," Uta said as the fingers of her left hand started glowing. The next moment, a teal-colored card appeared in her hand. Then with a quick flick of her wrist, she sent the card sailing through the air, embedding it into the wooden wall of their boat's cabin. Then she repeated the process from before, summoning another teal-colored card and this time embedding it in a nearby tree.
She looked at Luffy and smiled. "Now, watch this," she said before snapping her fingers. Yellow mechanical lines enveloped her, and in the blink of an eye, she disappeared from her spot and reappeared on the boat. A moment later, she snapped her fingers again and returned to Luffy's side.
"Teleportation, huh? Not bad at all," Luffy said, sounding impressed as another panel of information appeared in his head.
[Rendezvous - Rendezvous is an ability that allows the user to teleport between two designated points within a 500-meter radius by expanding stamina. Only two teleportation points can be active at a time. To set new points, the existing two must be recalled or destroyed. After each teleportation, there is a 1-minute cooldown before making another jump. If a teleportation point is destroyed, a 1-hour cooldown is required before setting new points.]
"Hey, Uta, I have a question," Luffy said, rubbing his chin. "Can your ability teleport other people too, or is it just you?"
"Huh... good question," Uta said, grabbing Luffy's hand. "Let's find out," she said and snapped her fingers. To their delight, she managed to teleport Luffy along with her, and now both of them were standing on the boat.
"Great, you can actually teleport people with you," Luffy grinned, then turned towards Uta and frowned. "Uta, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm okay, just give me a minute," Uta said as she drank an entire mug of water. "Apparently, teleporting others with me requires twice the amount of stamina I need to transport myself," Uta said, glancing at Luffy. "I guess I need to start learning Total Concentration Breathing again."
"Yeah, that would be good for you since it increases your natural stamina and helps to reduce stamina consumption," Luffy said, nodding at her suggestion.
Once she was rested, they returned to the beach, ready to test Uta's third ability.
"Okay, so as I said before, the last two abilities are weapons that I can materialize," she said as the two concentric circles on her palms glowed golden instead of purple. In the next moment, a sleek pistol with glowing golden intricate patterns and a white handle appeared in Uta's hand.
[Headhunter- The Headhunter ability equips the user with a highly accurate pistol with eight shots. The Headhunter uses energy-based ammunition with substantial piercing power. After firing eight shots, the pistol takes 30 seconds to recharge.]
"This baby is Headhunter!" Uta said, showing off the pistol with childlike excitement.
"Yeah, it does look cool," Luffy said and then set up targets for Uta to test her pistol on. "Here, give it a try."
Uta nodded as she took aim and fired Headhunter. True to her skill, she destroyed eight targets with ease without breaking a sweat. As she fired, Luffy observed how the glow on the gun faded with each shot until it completely disappeared on the eighth shot. After 30 seconds, the glow returned, indicating that the gun was reloaded. Luffy shared his observation with Uta, who nodded along.
"The pistol is good but kind of too loud, don't you think?" Luffy asked.
"I mean, if at any point we're relying on my abilities, any hope for stealth is long gone," Uta dryly remarked.
"True," Luffy nodded as they moved on to Uta's fourth and last ability.
This time, the mechanical tattoos on Uta's entire left arm glowed, and she swiped two fingers over her arm, materializing a futuristic-looking sniper rifle with a sleek, angular design. It had a similar design and color scheme to Headhunter, with the only difference being the purple and black accents all over its body. Three holographic sights floated above it in a single line, giving it increased accuracy compared to traditional snipers.
[Tour De Force - The Tour De Force ability equips the user with a highly accurate sniper rifle with eight shots. The Tour De Force utilizes energy-based ammunition with extremely high piercing power. After firing eight shots, the rifle takes 1 minute to recharge.]
"This," Uta declared dramatically, "is Tour De Force, and it's officially the love of my life."
"Good for you," Luffy laughed while shaking his head. "So, want to give it a try?" he asked, and Uta rapidly nodded her head. "Well, in that case, go and find a good vantage point while I set up targets for you."
Uta didn't need to be asked twice. She raced off into the woods, eager to find a perfect vantage point while Luffy prepared targets for her. This time, however, he coated some of the targets with green crystals from his own ability, wondering how Uta's new ability would fare against his crystals.
Once he finished setting up the targets, he walked back and stood at a safe distance before firing a spare gun into the air, signaling to Uta that the targets were ready.
Moments later, the booming sound of her sniper rifle echoed across the forest, and Luffy could see the energy from her shots rip through each target. Once Uta stopped firing, Luffy examined the targets, especially the ones he had coated with his crystals, and found that Uta's new gun had pierced through his crystal coating from one end to another.
"Damn… that thing's a monster," Luffy muttered, admiring the damage. "No wonder the devs kept nerfing this guy, patch after patch."
Uta returned from her sniper's perch, a satisfied smile on her face. They spent the next hour or so experimenting with her abilities, playing out different combat scenarios, and testing combinations between her powers and Luffy's own. The sun was beginning to set when their training was abruptly interrupted.
Both Luffy and Uta froze, their Observation Haki picking up the presence of two humans—unconscious and drifting toward the island on the sea.
Uta and Luffy shared a glance and quickly ran towards the shore, seeing the silhouettes of two people in the sea. Without wasting any time, both Uta and Luffy dove into the water, pulling the floating figures to safety.
Then, when Luffy pulled his wet hair back and cleaned the water out of his eyes, he glanced toward the two people they had just rescued and his eyes widened as he recognized who they were.
"Interesting..." Luffy muttered to himself as he took in the familiar faces. The green-haired man was unmistakably Roronoa Zoro, and lying beside him, unconscious but breathing, was another figure Luffy knew shouldn't be alive but miraculously was, just like Rouge. This was none other than Shimotsuki Kuina, Zoro's childhood friend who was supposed to have died years ago.
Luffy stood over them, wiping his face dry, thoughts racing. "Coincidence… or fate?" he mused, though a grin soon crept across his face. Whatever the reason, things were about to get a whole lot more interesting.
To be continued.