Takumi and Kaku gathered a heap of supplies on Buggy Island. Since Kaku only had two hands, Takumi reluctantly helped carry some of the load.
When they got back to the ship, Enel excitedly showed off his newly acquired large golden bracelets on both wrists. With a proud smile, he asked, "I melted the Golden Staff into bracelets. How do they look? Pretty cool, right?"
"Ugly," Takumi and Kaku replied in unison as they walked past Enel, heading directly into the cabin.
Enel's smile faltered, and he looked at the bracelets, asking himself, "Is it really... that bad?"
Later on, under Takumi's instructions, Enel and Kaku did some basic cleanup of the newly bought ship.
Kaku even went so far as to find a beginner's guide to sailing and started teaching Enel how to work the sails, weigh anchor, and steer the ship.
Thankfully, Enel wasn't slow-witted. He picked things up quickly, and by the time the sky was getting dark, he already had the basics down.
"I got it now!" Enel declared proudly. "So when do we leave? Now or in the morning?"
Kaku looked at Takumi, leaving the decision up to him. "Captain, it's your call."
Takumi didn't mind either way since steering the ship wouldn't be his job. But given that sailing on an ordinary ship would be a lot slower than flying, and they needed to find Germa 66 as soon as possible, and seeing how enthusiastic Enel was, there was no harm in sailing tonight.
"Let's go," Takumi decided.
"Alright! Get ready to witness the Thunder God's ship-handling skills!" Enel said as he flashed into the pilot cabin.
Kaku chuckled and shook his head. "He's getting full of himself after just a few hours of practice. I can already see him burning out in three minutes."
"Hmph! You dare underestimate the Thunder God? Long nose, I'll make you regret it."
"Haha, how about we make a bet? Let's see how long you last. I bet you won't make it past three hours," Kaku laughed.
Enel poked his head out of the pilot cabin, clearly annoyed. "Fine, let's bet. If I win, then from now on, when I tell you to go east, you better not go west. When I say do something, you do it without complaint! And if you win, then I'll listen to you for a whole week."
"Do you think I'm stupid?" Kaku snorted. "Why would I agree to that? If I win, I only get a week, but if you win, I have to listen to you forever? No deal. If we bet, it's got to be fair. Whoever wins gets the other's obedience for a week, nothing more, nothing less."
Enel sneered. "Alright then. Don't you dare back out when you lose."
Kaku shrugged. "A win is a win, a loss is a loss. I can take it. Can you?"
"Damn you! Are you looking down on me? Takumi, you're the witness!" Enel yelled. "If either of us tries to weasel out of this, you can break their bones and not heal them for a week!"
Takumi sighed. These two were always up to something ridiculous.
"Do whatever you want," Takumi said casually. He then pointed towards the direction where Germa 66 was supposed to be and told Enel to set sail. After that, he went into the cabin.
Though it was getting dark, given that this was Enel's first time steering a ship, Kaku stayed in the pilot cabin to keep an eye on his "interesting" maneuvers. Only when he was sure that things were under control did he leave to prepare dinner for the three of them.
Barely an hour after setting sail, dinner was ready, and Kaku called Enel and Takumi to the kitchen. They had just started eating when, out in the dark sea, a pirate ship slowly approached them.
Although Takumi and Enel had already sensed the intruders, eating took priority. They both ignored the pirates, who had silently boarded their ship.
"Long nose, there are a few rats on board. Go deal with them," Enel said while shoveling rice into his mouth.
Kaku shook his head, showing no inclination to move. "I've been busy all day. I'm too tired to bother. You do it."
Before they could argue further, the door to the cabin was suddenly kicked open.
A few fierce-looking pirates, all armed with guns and swords, rushed in. Leading them was a man with a cross-shaped scar on his face and a scruffy beard.
"Hand over all your valuables, and I'll let you live!" The scruffy-bearded man growled, his eyes bloodthirsty as he stared at the three men still eating.
Takumi, Kaku, and Enel didn't even bother to look at him.
The scar-faced pirate hesitated, getting more furious. "Hey! Don't pretend you didn't hear me! Hand over your valuables now, or I'll kill you where you sit!"
"All this noise is annoying," Enel grumbled, visibly irritated. "If you don't want to die, get lost."
"Bastards! Do you even understand the situation you're in?" The scarred pirate yelled. "We are pirates! If you don't cooperate, I'll make sure you and your ship sink to the bottom of the ocean!"
The pirate's underlings chimed in, adding fuel to the fire.
"Boss, why waste words on them? Let's just kill them and search the ship afterward."
"Yeah! These guys are scared out of their wits."
"Listen up! Our boss here has a bounty of ten million Berries! You should be trembling in fear! You've messed with the wrong crew, and we won't let you go, even if you beg!"
"Let's teach these fools a lesson!"
The more they shouted, the more hyped up they got. They all brandished their weapons and charged toward Takumi, Kaku, and Enel.
Takumi, who was calmly sipping his soup, started getting annoyed by all the noise.
"Enel," he said, his voice indifferent.
Enel frowned at the approaching pirates and let out a displeased grunt. He casually unleashed a few lightning strikes, taking out all of them in an instant.
The scarred pirate leader's face turned pale when he saw his men fall. "You—you're a Devil Fruit user?"
Enel raised his hand, letting arcs of electricity dance between his fingers, a wicked grin spreading across his face. "You've seen too much. Consider it an honor to die by the hand of the Thunder God."
With that, Enel flicked his wrist, sending a massive bolt of lightning at the scarred pirate. Unable to react in time, the pirate was split in two, his blood splattering across the floor, filling the room with a metallic stench.
Kaku glanced at the blood-soaked floor and frowned. "Couldn't you have held back a bit? This is going to be a pain to clean up."
Enel waved dismissively. "You telling me you've killed people without spilling blood? It's just blood. Clean it up, and it's done."
Kaku sighed and turned to Takumi. "Captain, I've already been busy enough. Cleaning this mess will take a lot of time. It's only fair that the one who made it cleans it up, right? Enel is always bullying me, Captain, you should do something about it."
Enel huffed. "Long nose, are you actually tattling on me? Listen, I'm not cleaning it up. I still have to sail after dinner, and I'm too busy for this."
Takumi, having finished his last bite, got up, ready to leave.
He had no intention of getting involved in Enel and Kaku's bickering—this kind of argument happened four or five times a day, and as long as they weren't bothering him, he didn't care what they did.
However, as Takumi was about to leave, Kaku spoke up. "Captain, I've been thinking about learning a new skill. I wanted to get your opinion first."
Takumi stopped and turned, giving Kaku a curious look.
Kaku smiled slightly. "I was thinking of learning bartending so that you wouldn't have to keep going to taverns for your drinks."
Before Takumi could say anything, Enel cut in, his mouth twitching. "Long nose, do you even have the time? Aren't you worried about overworking yourself to death with all the things you keep learning?"
Kaku waved it off. "What's the big deal? I've already arranged my schedule. If the captain approves, I'll do it. If not, then I'll drop the idea. I was just asking casually."
Takumi nodded. "Fine, go ahead." Takumi had a soft spot for alcohol, and if Kaku really learned bartending, that would be a good thing for him.
Hearing Takumi's approval, Kaku smiled wider. "I've already bought a book on bartending a while ago but never found the time to read it. Since the captain agrees, I'll start learning today. But that means I won't have the time to clean up this mess. Captain, how about we let Enel handle it?"
"Hey! That's cheating, long nose!" Enel protested. "Who cares about bartending? I'll do it! You clean this mess!"
"Bartending isn't as easy as you think," Kaku replied with a smile. "It's an art, and no offense, but I don't think you could manage it."
"You..."
"Enough," Takumi cut Enel off. "Will cleaning up kill you? Just do it."
"Oh, by the way," Kaku added, "since these guys were pirates, there's probably some treasure on their ship. After you clean up, don't forget to search their ship."
Enel's face twitched as he realized he was being played. "You bastard, long nose, you're setting me up!"
Electricity started crackling around Enel, even spreading to the golden staff in his hand.
Takumi placed his hand on the Lake Toya sword and stared at Enel, his voice calm. "Put it away."
____________________________
Support me
on Ko-fi
at ko-fi. com/gered
to read up to chapter 340+!
___________________________