"Huh?" Kaku was taken aback, "You mean to tell me you don't even know what a Celestial Dragon is?"
"Celestial Dragon? What, are they dragon-like people or the descendants of dragons?" Enel remained dismissive, "I am a god. Are these so-called Celestial Dragons supposed to be more important than a god?"
Kaku: "..."
This guy's arrogance really knows no bounds…
"Let me explain it this way." Kaku thought it was better to clarify things for Enel, especially since Sabaody Archipelago was a peculiar place. If someone as clueless as Enel caused trouble, the consequences could be severe. "Celestial Dragons are the World Nobles I mentioned earlier. They have the power to make anyone their slave if they so wish. If you disobey or go against a Celestial Dragon, at worst, you'll face punishment from a Marine Admiral."
The mention of Marine Admirals extinguished Enel's arrogance. "What? Marine Admirals? Isn't it the Marines' job to maintain peace and catch pirates? Why are they acting as bodyguards for the Celestial Dragons? And why would they deploy Admirals for them? Isn't that a bit over the top?"
"That's exactly how it is," Kaku replied, waving his hand. "In short, don't cause any trouble. Takumi probably asked me to keep an eye on you because he's worried you'll mess things up here and bring a Marine Admiral down on us. That would be a huge problem for all of us."
Enel: "..."
"Alright, alright, I get it," Enel grumbled. "I won't cause any trouble. Satisfied?"
Takumi, using Geppo, quickly reached the large tree marked with the number 40.
As his feet touched the soft grass-covered ground, the system's notification sound echoed in his mind.
[Ding! Congratulations, host! You have successfully arrived at the check-in location, Sabaody Archipelago. Check-in progress +10%. Current total progress: 10%. You have been awarded a new skill: Entry-level Water Style—Bubble Technique.]
Immediately, the information about the Water Style: Bubble Technique was embedded in Takumi's mind.
This was a Water Release jutsu from Naruto. Originally, it required a specific flute to blow bubbles that float toward the enemy and then explode.
However, Takumi could produce bubbles just by blowing with his breath.
This technique also allowed him to sit inside a bubble and control it to attack enemies. Overall, it could be used for both close combat and ranged attacks. Although its power wasn't as high as Takumi had hoped, it was still fairly decent.
Suddenly, something occurred to Takumi, and he asked, "Can I check the tasks for each island?"
[Ding! Yes. Besides the initial check-in task, Sabaody Island has five more progress tasks to complete. One of these tasks is worth 10% progress, while the other four are each worth 20%.]
"Check one of the 20% tasks."
[Ding! Random selection in progress… Selection complete. Task: Obtain the Paramecia-type Devil Fruit, the Rebound Fruit, which will be auctioned seven days from now in the No. 1 Grove. Completing this will award you 20% check-in progress.]
Hearing this, Takumi fell silent once more.
Another Devil Fruit auction?
Was he cursed to always encounter Devil Fruit auctions?
However, the Rebound Fruit did pique his interest a little.
That's because he didn't know much about its ability.
"What's the power of the Rebound Fruit? Does it rebound the opponent's attacks?" Takumi asked.
But the system remained silent, giving him no answer.
After a brief pause, Takumi decided not to press further. Since this was a progress task given by the system, it didn't matter what the fruit's ability was. He'd acquire it anyway.
However, Devil Fruits at auction tend to have high prices, often going for billions of Beli, which he couldn't afford. Even if he had the money, he wasn't about to waste it on an auction.
As for how he would obtain it, he'd just wait and see who the unlucky person was who managed to buy the fruit.
There were still seven days left, which gave him time to rest and explore Sabaody. Maybe he'd even run into Rayleigh and finally repay him for that drink he owed.
Sabaody Archipelago was where Rayleigh had retired as a coating craftsman.
With this thought, Takumi began walking toward the center of Sabaody Archipelago.
Because of the island's unique climate and tree composition, bubbles were constantly rising from the ground. Many of the locals even used these tough bubbles as a mode of transportation.
Soon, Takumi found himself in a quaint little town.
As he passed a shop that had various types of recumbent pedal bikes on display, a middle-aged man wearing sunglasses waved to him. "Hey, you over there, the guy in the hat! You're not from around here, are you? How about renting one of Sabaody's famous Bubble Cars to get around? It's only 500 Beli to rent one for a day. If you want to buy one, it's just 10,000 Beli. What do you think? Want to try it out?"
Takumi glanced at the bikes on display and thought for a moment before pulling out 500 Beli. "I'll rent one."
The sunglasses-wearing shop owner, seeing how straightforward Takumi was with the payment, became more enthusiastic. Rubbing his hands together, he grinned and said, "Renting is 500 Beli a day, but after ten days that's 5,000 Beli, and in twenty days, it's 10,000 Beli. For that same price, you could own one forever. Buying one is definitely more cost-effective. How about it? Why not just buy one?"
The natural bubbles of Sabaody could only exist within the island's climate. Once outside the island, the bubbles would pop. In other words, a Bubble Car was useless once you left the island.
People unfamiliar with Sabaody often got tricked by the shop owners into buying these cars.
Not wanting to waste time with the shopkeeper, Takumi entered the store and picked out a simple wooden single-seat Bubble Car.
Seeing that Takumi wasn't falling for his sales pitch, the shopkeeper scratched his head helplessly. "Well, seems like you're a sharp one. Alright, let me help you fit the car into the bubble."
The so-called installation involved placing the handlebars and seat area into the bubble while a small propeller, which provided the car's power, remained outside. The height was then adjusted based on the customer's preferences.
Once the Bubble Car was ready, Takumi climbed into the floating bubble and lay back on the pedal-powered car. He gave the pedals a few turns, and the small propeller outside the bubble started spinning, propelling the Bubble Car forward as he steered it.
"Hahaha, you got the hang of it quickly," the shopkeeper said, still trying one last time. "So, are you sure you don't want to just buy one?"
"No, thanks," Takumi replied, riding away on the Bubble Car.
Not long after he left, two figures emerged from behind the roots of a giant tree, their greedy eyes fixed on Takumi's receding figure.
************
Please support me on Ko-fi at ko-fi.com/gered to read up to chapter 215!