Chereads / One Piece : Descent / Chapter 73 - Chapter 33: Too Much Sand 6

Chapter 73 - Chapter 33: Too Much Sand 6

"Hey did you hear? The Straw Hats completely wiped out every single ship waiting for them on Alabasta," Jatt, a rookie Marine, whispered to his night shift buddy.

"Seriously?!" Logan, the buddy in question, replied. "I don't know why they even tried to capture them honestly! This is the same crew that managed to defeat Captain Smoker and Hina who just defeated our prisoner!"

"We're lucky we got the mission to escort him… imagine if we had to stay back and fight those monsters…" Jatt shuddered.

"Yeah, I think only our ship and the one escorting that agent captured late… Bentham I think his name was? Are alive… It's nuts! They're being called super rookies already…"

"Yeah, 4 members with bounties that—," Jatt paused as he saw something flicker in the distance. "Hey, did you see that?"

It was dark but underneath the pale moon, he swear he saw something move for a split second.

But now he couldn't see anything...

What was that?

"See what?" Logan said, puzzled.

Jatt scrambled for his binoculars and hastily placed them over his eyes to get a better look and let out a sigh of relief at the fact that there really was nothing there.

"Must have been because I'm sleepy or maybe I've been thinkin of the Captain and her "assets" too much," the Marine joked.

Commodore Emma was a complete babe and he thanked the lucky stars that he was allowed to work under her.

He continued to laugh at his own joke before coming to the realization that Logan was not laughing with him.

"Not funny?" Jatt asked rhetorically. "I thought it was pretty good…"

"Logan?"

The Marine finally turned around to regard his friend, wondering why he was being ignored—

There was no one next to him.

Why was there no one next to him?

He nervously began glancing around, a cold feeling seeping into his bones that made him begin shuddering.

Where was Logan? He was just next to him… Where did he end up going?

S-Should he go call the Commodore? Y-Yeah... that s-sounded like a good—

Splash.

The jittery Marine whirled around fully at what he thought was a noise and let out a shaky breath at seeing nothing there once more.

His mind was playing games with him. Logan probably went to the bathroom while he was thinking about Emma's amazing body.

Yeah… that had to be it.

Sighing to himself, he turned to sit back down and keep up with his night shift—

And came face to face with an all black figure, looming over him.

"AHHHHH! W-WHAT THE FU — mmgh!" Jatt tried to scream but two fucking arms sprouted from his shoulder and immediately covered his mouth.

He tried hard to struggle but it was for naught.

"You really thought your friend disappeared without a word?" Rosan asked calmly, raising a brow at the idiot. "Well, I can't say I blame you. I'd also come to such a stupid conclusion if I wanted to work off my fear."

"MGMMHM!" Jatt tried to scream for help to no avail.

He knew this person. Oh Kami he knew this person. They were making waves across the whole world with their incredible starting bounty and that handsome visage.

W-What was he doing here? How did he get here?! Wasn't the Red Devil supposed to just be leaving Alabasta?! What was the second most dangerous member of the Straw Hats doing here?!

"It's disappointing that your first option is to scream for help instead of trying to fight but I can't expect much from a Marine," the redhead muttered.

Without any hesitation, Rosan took a step forward and gently plunged a silver tanto into his chest, watching neutrally as blood bloomed from the injury and began seeping into his white uniform.

The hands covering his mouth vanished just in time for him to vomit blood and before he could scream, a gloved hand, courtesy of Rosan this time, replaced the previous pair and successfully muffled him again.

"Shhh," he murmured gently, watching the man fail to grip the tanto stabbing through him, cutting his hand in the process. "There's no need to struggle. Just close your eyes and rest. It'll all be over soon."

Jatt's struggles lessened over time and the soft, gentle whisper of Rosan began lulling him to a sleep that he wasn't going to wake up from.

"That's right. There's no need to be so noisy. Isn't that inconvenient? You wouldn't want to wake up your allies would you?" He asked, finally removing the blade from his chest and staring coldly at the bleeding body.

Right… noisy… wouldn't that be bad? H-He should join his sleeping allies… but wasn't he doing something…? He couldn't remember…

So… tired…

"I have to agree with Mod-chan, you are terrifying," Robin said with a shake of her head, watching the body drop with an uncaring gaze. She wasn't keen on feeling blood spill on her arms so she had dissolved them after Rosan stabbed him.

One thing she noticed about this version of Rosan, was that he had a tendency of questioning a person in a way that made them unsure of themselves.

He would ask you something in such a calm and genuine tone, that it really made the person have no choice but to question if he was right or not.

It was horrifically manipulative and incredibly effective but above all, it was terrifying. To make a person question what they knew... it was subtle but it was honestly scarier to her then a person who was blatantly imposing.

Her best friend hardly gave off that intimidating air. He was handsome and unassuming most days... and then you heard what he said and saw what he did and you realized he was even scarier.

Rosan wiped the blood on his gloves off with the Marine's outfit and regarded her. "You guys should never be afraid of me, unless I'm angry with you of course."

"Considering you were so quick to anger with emotions, that doesn't sound very reassuring," Mod said dryly.

"She's right, anger seems to be your most used emotion," Robin teased.

"Father's never gotten angry with me so I'm safe!" Ram beamed.

"Hm, we can discuss this later. We have more pressing matters," Rosan said, tossing the Marine's body overboard so he could join his friend.

"Let's kill the rest. We only need the Captain alive for now," the redhead said softly.

He needed her for one thing then she could join her soon to be dead crew.

"Right," Robin said, unbothered by his actions and content to be his support. She had seen too much memories of his as Reaper and compared to that, this was timid.

He was a complete demon as a child and the years truly did mellow him out.

Not by much though. It was in his nature to be their little monster.

Despite being imprisoned in the same room together, Crocodile and Daz Bones didn't bother speaking to each other.

What was there to say? They both lost their respective battles and their plans crumbled right before them due to the hands of one crew.

Besides the acknowledgment of each other's presence, they both chose to remain completely silent.

The two Devil Fruit users were chained up with seastone and accepted their fate, content to wait until they were shoved into Impel Down.

They had gotten used to the utter silence of the night so it was a complete surprise to the both of them, when the door to their holding room burst open.

That surprise turned immediately into contempt, when Crocodile realized who it was.

"You didn't think that fight in the desert would be the last we saw of each other, right? After all, there was so much more to be done, Crocodile," Rosan greeted, stepping into the room like he owned the place.

"Nico Robin and Rosan…" Crocodile grunted, anger immediately subsiding.

There was no point in being angry. His rage had tapered off with the knowledge that he had been utterly defeated by Straw Hat.

Robin and Rosan stared at the Warlord without emotion on their features. They didn't even spare a glance at the other presence in the room, focusing on the former Warlord.

"How did you find me?" Crocodile couldn't help but ask.

"I've been watching you since our battle and I never stopped," Rosan replied calmly. "Would you like to know why?" he asked rhetorically.

Crocodile grunted uncaringly. It was likely that this boy had taken out all the Marines on the ship which meant he was at the complete mercy of the duo. "I'll bite then. Why?"

"Because I was curious on how you managed to become such a disappointment."

That roused Crocodile from his apathetic mood, if the scowl on his face indicated anything.

"You were a supernova. A notorious pirate when Robin and I were just children. Luffy wasn't even born yet when you were making a name for yourself," Rosan began calmly, piercing a hole through Crocodile with his gaze alone.

"You even traveled through the second half of the Grand Line… the New World. You have a strong Devil Fruit, a cunning nature and good head on your shoulders with years of experience..." the redhead praised.

"…You should be strong. So, why did you lose to a crew who had just entered the Grand Line? Don't you find that a little disappointing? Shouldn't you feel more ashamed?"

All the apathy was gone. Crocodile's momentary ego boost at his former accolades, was sent crashing at the realization that he should have never lost to this crew.

"Now you realize? You should have dominated every single one of us. In the desert, the Marines would have had to send an Admiral or an exceptionally strong Vice Admiral to defeat you. Your claims of being invincible in the desert should be true but it isn't because you're far weaker then you should be, Sir Crocodile," Rosan finished mockingly.

It was a bitter pill to swallow, but Rosan was right. He never was the same after suffering such a humiliating defeat at the hands of Whitebeard and it led to him losing to a rookie crew.

No matter how strong they were, Crocodile, if he had stayed in shape, should never in a million years have lost that fight, even if they all ganged up on him.

Yet he lost one on one against Straw Hat and likely would lose to this redhead too.

That was unacceptable.

Rosan saw the fire in his eyes and knew he won.

Now, he could strike.

"That was a great dissection of me, redhead but that doesn't explain why you're here," Crocodile rumbled with a deep glare of annoyance.

Was he here to finish him off? Bragging before landing the finishing blow? The redhead seemed spiteful enough to do that—

"Join me."

Crocodile and Daz Bones (who was slightly annoyed at being treated like a non factor) blinked in genuine surprise at that statement.

"What?!" The former Warlord asked in disbelief.

Rosan looked nonplussed by their surprise. "I said join me. I've already killed all but one Marine so you aren't going to Impel Down. I've had plans for you from the start."

Crocodile snorted.

Was this redhead insane? After everything he had done, he was being invited to work with him? They weren't just enemies, this was two of the three who ruined all of his hard work.

The former Warlord would admit, he garnered a respect for the redhead for being just as cunning as him but this was too ambitious.

"You're insane redhead. I have no interest in being friends with you."

Robin shook her head, much to their confusion, and finally spoke. "That, was the wrong thing to say, Crocodile."

"Wrong thing to say? What are you talking about Nico Rob—"

Crocodile wasn't able to finish his sentence as a fist planted itself into his gut with brutal force and a glowing gaze bored into him without remorse.

The Warlord, who was still not even remotely closed to healed from the thrashing Luffy gave him, threw up blood at the strength behind the blow, before a searing hot hand wrapped around his throat.

"Don't speak to Robin unless I say you can," Rosan intoned, heating up Crocodile's body with no mercy.

He watched the man try to hold back his pain but he was failing miserably.

"I think you're sorely mistaken, Crocodile," the redhead whispered dangerously. "I want to use you and your skills for my own benefit. That's all."

"Friends? With you? After what you did to Robin? You should be glad I'm even giving you this alternative because one way or another, you will be useful to me,the redhead promised him, eyes flickering slightly.

If at any point in time, Robin asked him to kill Crocodile. He would do it. It didn't matter what the man was up to, Rosan would get rid of him.

His life lie in Robin's hand. And well, if he refused to join their side, there were plenty of other things he could experiment on the man with.

He would be the perfect subject to practice his technique on.

After all, there's no way he'd let the Suna Suna no mi go free.

Crocodile couldn't hide the flinch from the pain he was currently in and he spat out another glob of spit.

"You… You don't plan on killing me if I refuse," the Warlord huffed.

"You are smart," was all Rosan replied. "Surely you didn't think I'd kill you immediately, right? It's either you join me or suffer the consequences of attacking Robin."

Robin shuddered a bit at that protectiveness, gazing piercingly at Rosan with an unreadable look in her eyes.

Not only would he kill Crocodile on a dime if she requested it, he never forgot that the man attacked her and would punish him if they didn't exploit the sandman…

All for her…? Just how far was Rosan willing to go for her...

Crocodile didn't fancy getting tortured by this apathetic redhead. He didn't miss the hot rage on his face during their last encounter and realized that the redhead probably wouldn't have extended this offer if he truly didn't see his value.

Tch…

"What do you want from me?" The former leader of Baroque Works finally asked, voice full of hate.

Rosan stared at him for a moment. "With your experience, you will be a valuable source of information. You are free to do as you please most of the time. But when I ask something of you, you will do it. It doesn't matter what it is, you will do it without complaint. Make no mistake, you are my subordinate."

"Other then that, you can do whatever but do not go back to Alabasta. You can even take Daz Bones and this ship if you want."

All things considered, Crocodile expected to be a slave but this wasn't terrible. It was still awful by his standards but he could work with this.

"Good. If you can get stronger then me, then by all means free yourself but until then, I'll beat you into submission as much times as it takes until you understand who's in charge," Rosan promised.

Despite everything, the redhead's words were lighting a fire under him that he hadn't felt in a long time.

He didn't feel like dying out right after being reignited.

Besides, he could grudgingly respect how the redhead handled business.

"Fine," Crocodile grunted.

Rosan released his grip and stood up. "I look forward to working with you."

Robin smiled in amusement, no hint of animosity in her eyes. "We're the only ones who are aware of this. Let's keep it like that."

That made sense. Crocodile was very sure the Straw Hats hated him with every fiber in their being. They did care for that princess after all.

This would be kept under wraps...

He was used to that. He preferred this actually. If anyone found out he was answering to this damn redhead...

"How will we keep contact with each other?" Daz Bones asked curiously.

Since he was being permitted, he saw no reason to not follow Crocodile. He had a healthy respect for the Warlord so he would do so.

"I've already handled it. I will visit you when I feel like it," Rosan replied. Wouldn't want him to be ambushed after all.

While burning him, Rosan placed a Save Point on his hook and left it at that…

But that wasn't all.

Rosan hated traitors. He hated them with a passion that was badly expressed due to his limited emotions.

So of course he had countermeasures in place. The very tiny mechanical fly resting inside of Crocodile was proof of that.

He had even taken his intangibility into count and the mechanical fly would secrete water before exploding, instantly killing the former Warlord.

Crocodile didn't need to know that though. Perhaps if he proved his use, Rosan would disable the fly but for now, it was glued to his heart.

The former Warlord snorted, not aware of what Rosan had done and just accepted his response.

"Now, there's just one last thing to do and then you're free to remind the world who you are," Rosan commented.

A ringing Den Den was swiftly picked up by the busy Marine there.

"This is Marine Headquarters."

"T-This is Commodore Emma! We're currently under attack b-by an unknown enemy!"

Commodore Emma… Wasn't she the one escorting Crocodile?! Who was attacking them?!

"Commodore Emma, what's going on?!"

Emma seemed to gain her composure at hearing the urgency on the other line. "I… There was a storm and it struck our ship, leaving it severely… leaving it severely damaged and then an unknown assailant began attacking our ship!"

The Marine grew worried at that. An unknown assailant? Who was tracking them? How did they even know where their ship was?

"Are you alright? Did you deal with them?" He asked.

"No. I called to let you know that they're here to free Crocodile and that they will probably succeed. Most of my men are down but are doing their best to hold them back," Emma said grimly. "Before they get me, I need to let you be aware that there is probably a mole in our ranks."

A mole…? That made sense considering someone managed to find their ship but he would need to see if she had proof.

"Do you have proof, Commodore?" He prodded.

"Yes I have proo—"

Shlick.

The other line went silent after that wet noise and the Marine grew concerned at the gruesome noise.

"Commodore Emma?! Are you there?! Speak to me!" He asked, paling slightly.

There was nothing on the other line for a moment, before the noise was broken up by a weak, wet gasp.

"Help… me," Emma gasped out before the call hung up.

Crocodile underestimated Rosan. In fact, he underestimated everything about him but now he could see loud and clear why things went so haywire on Alabasta.

The redhead was more then just cunning. He was a demon. To so effortlessly manipulate the information the Marines were getting...

Perhaps crossing him wasn't in his best interest at the moment.

"Well done, Commodore Emma," Rosan whispered, removing the blade from her chest and staring at the blonde Marine beauty with a tilted head. "It's such a shame you weren't Captain Hina or Commodore Smoker. Now you have to take the fall for them."

Her response was to gag, cough up blood and collapse on the floor.

The Marine Captain (who had finally regained control of her body) stared at the monster with terror in her eyes, not understanding why he did this and what he gained from it.

He… He killed all her men right under her nose, attacked and tied her up, went to recruit Crocodile and then… and then he took control of her body and fed the Marines with lies that would throw suspicion onto their own allies instead of the rightful culprit.

Never in her life had she ever felt so violated...

The Straw Hats would never be suspected. They were just in the middle of a battle with the former Warlord after all which made this all the more confusing.

Why? Why did the Red Devil free his enemy? What was the point?!

Robin was so very glad that she was on Rosan's side and that he cared this much about her. The things he did to people he didn't care about… to be blunt, it was horrifying.

If they thought she was the Devil Child… Rosan would look like hell itself to the world.

"That should be all. I'll revamp this ship in your image and then I'll be on my way. Don't try and keep track of my visits, they will be random," Rosan said softly, glancing back at Crocodile and the visibly nervous Daz Bones.

Crocodile merely felt his respect for the redhead begrudgingly grow.

He was someone willing to do whatever he needed to do to win.

Looking at this display… He'd need to get stronger on the off chance this uncaring redhead thought to get rid of him.

To him, most people were just pawns to be used.

Not exactly like Crocodile (who treated everyone like a pawn) but respectable enough.

He couldn't help but think he made a deal with the Devil though.

"Very well," the sandman said, testing his body and nodding in satisfaction after being freed. "Watch your back. Don't think you can control me forever."

"Thinking like that will only make you more useful to me," Rosan countered.

He didn't care about acquiring Crocodile's loyalty. It would literally never happen and they were all aware of it.

Earning his compliance while the sandman trained to get stronger, would just make him do tasks easier for the redhead.

He wouldn't dissuade that. He'd encourage it as long as he benefited off of it.

If Crocodile grew too strong (which wouldn't happen) then Rosan would just blow up the bug.

There was no escaping this. No one escaped him.

Before the redhead could begin on the ship, a wet gurgle caught their attention and everyone's eyes roamed to the struggling Commodore.

She tried to push herself up to grab the Den Den Mushi and Rosan had to respect her. Even in her final moments, she was trying.

An admirable Marine…

He cut off her course and hoisted the women up with one hand, gripping her neck tighter and tighter.

...It was such a shame that she was a Marine.

"You are not needed anymore. You performed your job admirably, so you may rest with your allies," Rosan told her kindly, walking over to the railing and hanging her right above the ocean.

Crocodile and Daz Bones watched, reminding themselves that this could happen to them at any point.

Robin watched with a neutral gaze, no empathy in her eyes.

Emma struggled for naught and could only stare at that merciless gaze with defeat, accepting her fate.

"Why? Why did you do this...?" She rasped.

"Why?" Rosan tilted his head. "You won't understand what goes through my head. Why should I explain my rationale to you, Emma?" He said eventually.

She shuddered at the uncaring reply and gripped his arm weakly.

"You're a monster..." Emma said limply, tone helpless as those soulless eyes drained all the hope out of her.

Rosan's response was to crush her windpipe and drop her in the unforgiving water below, no hesitation at all in his stance.

Just that cruel, empty gaze as he watched her sink into the cold water below.

He stared at the splash with a neutral eye before snorting to himself.

"You'd be #4171 to say that."

Memory Viewing With Robin and Rosan - 3

Continued!

Time frame is before they land on Alabasta.

Robin had to admit, she was thoroughly enjoying viewing Rosan's memories.

It was never boring, especially with Maro becoming more and more outgoing.

Right now, the future Queen was proposing that they invade the kingdom of Germa and Rosan, pleased to see that she had come to a decision on her own, agreed readily with her.

The redhead quickly sought out to find information on the elusive kingdom and consulted Aiko with it.

"You are incredibly effective," Robin muttered.

It didn't take him long at all to pinpoint and find out where Germa was located and after a meeting, Rosan and Maro had a good enough plan on what they'd be doing.

"I'm not one to waste time," Rosan replied calmly as the memory version of him flew the two over the kingdom located in the East Blue.

They chose a great time to attack because Germa was currently in the midst of invading some kingdom.

Maro's excitement rang true because without wasting anytime, she cloaked herself and flew straight into the kingdom.

"So you guys weren't even sure what you were raiding them for?" Robin asked in amusement, as Rosan walked through the castle with no set purpose.

Mod rolled her eyes. "No, they just assumed that it would have something valuable in there."

"It's called the Kingdom of Science... surely it would have something great. You have to take risks sometimes, Mod-chan... you're far too cautious all the time," Rosan replied calmly.

The Devil Fruit opened her mouth to refute his claim and then closed it.

He... was kind of right. She was a bit too cautious wasn't she?

"Don't worry, Mod-chan... someone has to be cautious in Rosan's head. We all know it isn't him or Ram," Robin reassured, running a hand through her hair with a slight smile.

Mod sighed in bliss and nodded at her words.

They watched Reaper enter some child's room, who was fond of the color green, only to find a strange canister with the number 4 on it.

The Angel of Death tilted his head and Maro, who had went another way, chose that moment to speak with him again.

"So Maro is the one who found the blueprints of the Raid Suit," Robin said, rolling her eyes at how excited she sounded to have one eventually.

After some discussion, the two both agreed to have the suit created and Rosan made the very immoral decision to kidnap a scientist to work for them way too easily.

"You are a trip," Robin sighed in exasperation as she watched Rosan knock out and kidnap a scientist, before stealing all of the technology in their cloning room.

So Germa had clones... that would explain why they were such a dominant kingdom. If their technology allowed them to even create clones, it was a great thing Rosan and Maro chose to invade them because now Celadon had the means to it...

"Germa must truly hate you. I wouldn't be surprised if you are the greatest enemy they have," Robin couldn't help the tiny laughter at that.

"Based on what we did to Judge, I'm inclined to believe that," Rosan muttered, eyes glimmering in a bit of amusement. "Reaper has a lot of enemies to be wary of. Both Marines, Pirates and Kingdoms dislike me."

Robin raised a brow. "Judge? I thought your main point of this mission, was to avoid Judge at all costs... you guys ended up finding him anyways?"

Mod smiled brightly. "Things went a little haywire..."

Haywire was one way to put it... Robin couldn't keep the surprise off her face at seeing a very familiar face there.

"Is... that Sanji?" She asked in shock. The woman glanced at all the other children there and realized that it was almost certainly Sanji locked in that prison with the strange head piece on.

After all, every kid there had a swirly brow.

"Oh right... I was supposed to keep that a secret," Rosan muttered, furrowing his brows. "Well, it's fine. I won't hide anything from you so Sanji will just have to accept it."

"Sanji knows your Reaper?" Robin mused.

Rosan nodded. "I revealed it to him before he officially joined our crew. I trusted him enough to do so."

She had no idea Sanji's past was so sad... the blonde was being constantly bullied by his modified quadruplet brothers and even his father treated him like dirt!

His sister feared what would happen to her so she stayed out of it... but at least she didn't actively bully him...

Still didn't stop Rosan from tearing into her though. Her best friend really had a way with words.

Her heart went out for their chef, at seeing the tears of sadness spilling out of his eyes.

Being told he was a failure because his Father's sick experiment failed on him... and then being relentlessly bullied by his emotionless brothers...

She was glad that he was doing so well now on the Straw Hats. This was too cruel.

Evidently, Rosan agreed because he proceeded to beatdown Sanji's brothers with no remorse, before choosing to free the blonde himself, much to everyone's shock.

"It's not in my nature to make fun of a person with such conviction. No matter what their dream may be," Reaper informed the confused blonde. "You fully believe that you can become a cook after being imprisoned for an unknown amount of time, why would I not believe you if this can't change your resolve?"

Robin smiled as the tears formed in Sanji's eyes and the blonde looked up at Reaper with clear worship in his eyes.

"I had no idea Sanji went through that," she remarked softly.

Another child with a difficult life... Sanji was rather similar to both her and Rosan.

"And look how he turned out now," Rosan commented. "He didn't let this drag him down. No longer is he weak and he's a fantastic chef. I knew I did the right thing freeing him," the redhead smiled slightly.

"And I'm all the more proud of you for it," Robin smiled, stroking his hair in a pleased manner.

"Me too!" Mod smiled brightly, before her mouth formed into a scowl. "I'm glad you managed to get him out of such a hellish environment... Judge is a terrible person."

Robin didn't think a parent could be as terrible as Mod and Rosan made them out to be... until she actually saw Judge.

The man... he was so callous. He truly didn't care at all about Sanji, to the point where he was relieved that the blonde was running away from him.

"Don't ever admit that I'm your father…," Judge had said gravely, closing his eyes. "...in front of other people!"

"What type of parent is he?" Robin frowned deeply, watching as poor Sanji burst into tears and began truly sobbing in anguish.

She just... all because he wasn't afflicted by the modifications his other children had? All because he was kind? What type of human being was Judge, to forsake his own child at the age of 8?

"If I ever see him again and I'm strong enough, I will kill him," Rosan commented. "Sanji may not want him dead, but I do. Someone so callous shouldn't be a father."

Robin found herself nodding at his words. "The world would be a better place without him. I can't believe him..."

What would cause someone to act so cruel with their child? Robin would never have the heart to tell her own flesh and blood to refrain from admitting she was their mother, even with the knowledge that she was the Devil Child.

It was just awful...

Thankfully, Sanji did manage to get away from him and Reaper stayed behind to ensure that Judge had no intention of pursuing.

The duo of Grim and Reaper stared off with the giant of a man and the battle ensued.

Even without the Raid Suit to greatly enhance his capabilities, Judge was still dealing with the bounty hunters with a startling ease.

Predicting all their moves, weathering all their blows...

He was handling them well and looked none the bothered.

"I don't even know how we won this fight," Rosan admitted honestly. "He was too arrogant, didn't take us serious enough."

"Spoilers much?" Robin asked with a raised brow. "I'm still watching the battle you know."

"...My bad," he muttered.

She cracked a smile at that. "Kidding. Kidding. I'm still rather curious how you even managed to break through... this looks like an unwinnable battle."

Despite how unfavorable the battle was for them, Rosan and Maro abused the enclosed terrain to slowly but surely overwhelm the close ranged specialist.

It was like catching lightning in a bottle. All the stars aligned well for Maro and Rosan to win the battle.

The enclosed environment that favored the flying duo more. The fact that Judge didn't have his suit or his weapon and was forced to rely his much worse hand to hand combat...

And of course, their utterly nonsense Devil Fruits.

After realizing they were at such a heavy disadvantage, the duo decided it was time to cheat.

You never wanted Rosan to cheat.

The very first thing Rosan did, was modify Judge's sensitivity and as someone who had been on the receiving end of that so much, Robin would never want to take damage while that ability was on her.

She was proven correct, because everything snowballed out of control for the leader of Germa the moment that happened.

Grim and Reaper were utterly relentless, as they repeatedly attacked the man, who was desperately trying to account for two mobile demons.

Judge tried to go back on the offensive, but the moment he hit Maro, the tempo of the match increased even further.

"I can't believe your teamwork evolved to this level in a matter of months," Robin muttered in awe.

Was it just the effect Rosan had on people? Was he actually adaptable despite the stubborn front he put up?

After all, Rosan and Robin reached such levels of teamwork this quickly too and it was the same with Meiko and Rosan as well...

How polarizing...

The duo continuously attacked and made sure to counteract Judge's precognitive abilities, by giving him no room to move.

Finally he made a fatal error and a pillar of fire erupted from underneath him, shooting him up into Reaper's merciless grasp.

They took full advantage of it. Rosan cut continuously into the man until launching him down.

Into a full Zoan Maro's club.

"Monsters... I can't believe you and Maro actually managed to make a both of your unnatural aggression cohesive," Robin complimented.

It was very different from the way her and Rosan fought. Robin was fine being ranged support for the redhead.

Her style of fighting, was actually why Rosan became so partial to close combat. It was to balance out their skills. Mod-chan utilized far ranged options much more then her son.

Huh, he really was adaptable.

Rosan smiled slightly. "Yeah, teaming up with Maro is for a relentless assault with no breaks at all. My most aggressive partner by far."

She nodded at his assessment, frowning at seeing the duo flee as they were about to kill Judge.

Such a shame...

But they got everything they came there for so she wasn't to disappointed. She was even getting a Raid Suit far into the future because of this trip.

How pleasant.

"I'm excited to see my Raid Suit now," Robin smiled eagerly.

"I am too... I wonder what ability it will derive from your Devil Fruit?" Rosan mused.

"We should find out soon enough. I'm looking forward to it," the Devil Child responded.

After revelling in their victory and converting the scientist to their side, Rosan and Maro quickly made their way back to the ship.

It was there that Maro saw Rosan's female form for the first time.

"I regret showing her this form. She's been obsessed with it ever since," Rosan sighed with a shake of his head, staring at his female counterpart with a neutral gaze.

He could see why so many people were attracted to her, but then again he could see why so many people were attracted to him.

"She looks like she's died and gone to heaven," Robin laughed, watching Maro shamelessly stare at the woman's large breast.

She had to admit, 13 year old female Rosan was adorable. She could see why the Dokkaebi was so attracted to her.

"Well, I guess her seeing this form turned out for the best. It's how we found out Maro and Angel had crushes on each other," Mod giggled.

Robin joined her because it was adorable!

The look of horror on Maro's face when she realized just who she had a crush on, cemented to Robin that the girl truly was Rosan's student.

Angel herself probably didn't realize she had a crush on Maro, but based on interactions, the redhead had liked the bluenette for quite a while.

"How did those two manage to get together?" Robin asked curiously.

Rosan snorted and shrugged. "Apparently, Angel confessed to her the moment Maro was about to confess and she ended up fainting."

That got the three others to giggle before Robin paused.

"Apparently? You weren't there?" Robin asked.

The redhead's small smile vanished and he shook his head slowly. "No, it was right after I left them on Celadon..."

Robin frowned in anticipation at that. "That's coming up soon I imagine."

The redhead nodded. "Are you hungry? Let's go eat first before continuing."

The brunette thought about it before nodding. "A light snack please. I can't go getting fat off of your cooking."

"Just work it off. Your figure is already incredible though so you have nothing to worry about," Rosan complimented.

Robin blinked at his compliment and looked down at herself. "Incredible you say? Aren't you just the flatterer?"

"I just speak the truth," he nodded.

The Devil Child rolled her eyes in amusement. "It's no wonder you're so popular with the opposite gender. Why if I were any easier you might have wooed me over."

"Please be a little easier!" Ram thought shamelessly.

"Wow, passive Robin doesn't do with every flow? Color me shocked," Rosan snorted as they began vanishing.

"Don't imply such a dangerous thing. I'll hurt you," she said flatly.

"...My bad."

"Forgiven."

Ram collapsed on the floor in despair. "Auntie, this is impossible. I'm about to start acting really reckless."

"Ram, please don't," Mod said patiently.

Ram nodded but she wasn't truly listening.

No, the ring wouldn't be satisfied until she at least saw them kiss.

She just needed the opportunity to arise.