Isaac Newton in One Piece

Isaac sat cross-legged in a small clearing behind the shed where he and Nolan had been staying, his gaze focused on a collection of objects scattered in front of him: stones, sticks, and a handful of nails he'd scrounged from the shed. The morning sun filtered through the trees, casting soft shadows across the ground.

Nolan watched from a few feet away, sitting on a stump with his notebook in hand. "You're really getting into this whole devil fruit thing, huh?"

Isaac didn't answer immediately. He picked up a stone and held it in his palm, rolling it thoughtfully between his fingers. "Mastering these abilities isn't just about power, Nolan. It's about understanding the rules of this world and how to bend them to my will."

"Spoken like a true philosopher," Nolan said with a grin. "Alright, Professor Newton, what's today's lesson?"

Isaac smirked faintly and held up the stone. "The second law of motion: force equals mass times acceleration."

Nolan raised an eyebrow. "You're gonna throw rocks again?"

"Not just throw them," Isaac corrected. He tossed the stone into the air lightly, and as it began to fall, a faint green glow enveloped it. "I'm going to see how far I can push the force by increasing the acceleration as far as I can."

With a flick of his wrist, Isaac sent the stone hurtling forward at an incredible speed. It struck a thick tree trunk with a resounding crack, embedding itself deep into the wood.

Nolan let out a low whistle. "That's… terrifying."

Isaac stood, brushing the dirt from his hands. "It's not just about throwing things faster. It's about understanding the relationship between mass, force, and velocity. If I can manipulate one, I can control the outcome."

He grabbed one of the nails next and turned to a thinner tree nearby. Holding the nail between his fingers, he focused, channeling the strange energy of the Rikou Rikou no Mi into the object. The green glow reappeared, faint but steady.

This time, when Isaac threw the nail, it pierced clean through the tree, emerging from the other side before embedding itself in the ground several feet away.

Nolan blinked. "Okay, now that's just showing off."

Isaac ignored the comment, his mind already shifting to the next experiment. He gathered a handful of stones and arranged them in a small pile on the ground. "The third law of motion," he said, more to himself than to Nolan. "For every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction."

Nolan tilted his head. "What does that mean in devil fruit terms?"

Isaac didn't answer immediately. Instead, he crouched down and placed both hands on the ground near the stones. Closing his eyes, he focused on the energy within him, letting it flow through his body and into the earth beneath him.

The stones began to tremble, vibrating slightly as if responding to an unseen force. Then, with a sudden burst of energy, they shot upward, scattering in all directions like a small explosion.

Nolan yelped and ducked as one of the stones zipped past his head. "Hey! A little warning next time!"

Isaac straightened, a small smile playing at his lips. "That wasn't as precise as I'd hoped," he admitted. "But the principle is sound. By directing force into the ground, I created an opposing force that launched the stones upward."

"Sure, but you almost launched me upward too," Nolan grumbled, brushing dirt off his shirt.

Isaac picked up another nail and turned it over in his fingers. "If I can refine this… if I can control the direction and magnitude of the opposing forces, I could create all kinds of effects. Defensive barriers, offensive shockwaves…"

"Or just make rocks fly everywhere," Nolan muttered, though his tone was more amused than annoyed.

Isaac shot him a look but didn't argue. Instead, he set the nail down and began sketching patterns in the dirt with a stick, mapping out potential applications of the third law. Nolan leaned over to watch, his curiosity outweighing his earlier complaints.

"You're really serious about this, huh?" Nolan said after a moment.

"I have to be," Isaac replied without looking up. "If we're going to survive out here, I need to understand this power completely. Every principle, every limitation. And once I do…"

Nolan raised an eyebrow. "What then?"

Isaac finally looked up, his green eyes gleaming with determination. "Then the rules of this world will be mine to command."

Nolan let out a low whistle, shaking his head. "You're scary when you talk like that, you know?"

Isaac smirked faintly. "Good. The more people underestimate me, the better."

With that, he turned back to his experiments, his mind already racing with new ideas to test.

As Isaac crouched down to sketch another pattern in the dirt, mapping out a theoretical application of the third law of motion, a faint rustling sound reached his ears. His sharp gaze flicked toward the nearby trees, narrowing slightly.

Nolan, seated nearby, noticed Isaac's sudden pause. "What's wrong?" he asked, lowering the notebook he'd been jotting notes in.

Isaac didn't answer immediately. Instead, he straightened and scanned the trees around them. The faint rustling grew louder, followed by a muffled grunt.

"Someone's there," Isaac murmured, his gaze locking onto a particularly tall tree with wide branches.

Before Nolan could respond, there was a loud snap! as one of the thinner branches broke under pressure. A moment later, a small figure tumbled out of the tree, arms flailing.

"Whoa! Whoaaaaa!"

Thud!

Luffy landed in an undignified heap a few feet away, his straw hat miraculously remaining on his head. For a moment, he sat there dazed, rubbing his head and muttering, "That really hurt…"

Nolan stared, wide-eyed. "Isn't that the kid from the village? The one who—"

"—the one who soaked us with a bucket of water," Isaac finished, his tone dry.

Luffy looked up at them, a sheepish grin spreading across his face. "Hehe… hi."

Isaac folded his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Care to explain why you were spying on us?"

"I wasn't spying!" Luffy protested, jumping to his feet. "I was just… uh… watching! Yeah, watching what you were doing!"

"Which is basically the same thing," Nolan pointed out, rolling his eyes.

Luffy ignored the comment, his curiosity getting the better of him. He pointed to the tree with the embedded rock and then to the tree with the hole from the nail. "That was so cool! How'd you do that? Are you a magician or something?"

Isaac sighed, rubbing his temple. "It's not magic. It's science. And no, I'm not going to explain it to you."

"Aw, come on!" Luffy whined, bouncing on his heels. "You've got this weird green glowing thing, and you're throwing stuff really fast! That's way cooler than anything I've ever seen!"

Nolan snorted. "You're easily impressed, aren't you?"

"Yup!" Luffy said cheerfully, completely unbothered. He turned back to Isaac, his grin widening. "Teach me how to do it!"

Isaac stared at him, deadpan. "No."

"Why not?" Luffy pouted.

"Because it's not something you can just learn," Isaac replied. "It's a devil fruit ability, only me and me alone can use it."

Luffy's eyes widened in excitement. "A devil fruit?! You ate one? Which one? What does it do?"

Isaac sighed again, realizing he wasn't going to get rid of the boy easily. "The Rikou Rikou no Mi. It lets me manipulate forces related to motion and inertia."

Luffy tilted his head, clearly not understanding half of what Isaac had just said. "So… you can throw stuff really hard?"

Isaac pinched the bridge of his nose. "That's… one application of it, yes."

"That's awesome!" Luffy said, his grin returning full force. "I'm gonna get a devil fruit someday too, and then I'll be even cooler than you!"

"Good luck with that," Isaac said dryly, turning back to his sketches.

Nolan leaned over and whispered, "You think he's going to stick around?"

Isaac sighed. "Knowing him? Probably."

As if to confirm Isaac's suspicion, Luffy plopped down on the ground next to them, watching Isaac's every move with rapt attention. "So, what're you doing now? Can you make stuff fly again? Or maybe make me fly?"

Isaac gave him a flat look. "Don't push your luck."

Luffy just laughed, clearly unfazed, and continued watching them, his endless energy already proving to be a new kind of challenge for Isaac and Nolan.

Isaac tried to focus on the sketches he'd been working on, but Luffy's constant questions and unrelenting energy were difficult to ignore.

"What if you made something explode with your powers? Could you do that? Or could you throw me up so high I'd touch the sky? Or what if—"

"Luffy," Isaac interrupted, turning to him with a tired expression, "do you ever stop talking?"

Luffy blinked at him, genuinely considering the question before grinning wide. "Nope!"

Nolan chuckled, shaking his head. "I think you've met your match, Isaac."

Isaac shot Nolan a look, but his exasperation faded when he glanced back at Luffy. There was something about the boy—his boundless energy, his ceaseless curiosity—that tugged at a long-buried memory. It hit Isaac like a gentle wave, washing over him before he could stop it.

Benjamin. His little brother from his first life.

Isaac leaned back against the tree, his green eyes softening as he was transported back to another time and place. Benjamin had been so much like this—full of questions, endless energy, and a pure love for life. He'd followed Isaac everywhere, insisting on learning everything he could, even if he didn't always understand it.

"What're you thinking about?" Luffy's voice brought him back to the present.

Isaac blinked, looking at the boy who stood there grinning at him. "You remind me of someone," he admitted quietly.

"Someone awesome, right?" Luffy asked, his chest puffing up proudly.

"Someone annoying," Isaac replied with a small smirk.

Nolan raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Who?"

Isaac hesitated, the memory still raw even after what felt like lifetimes. "My friend," he said softly. "From... a long time ago."

"What was he like?" Luffy asked, sitting down cross-legged in front of Isaac like a child eager for a story.

Isaac glanced down, his voice growing quieter. "He was curious, just like you. Always full of energy. Always asking questions. And he... had this way of making you want to be better, even when you didn't think you could."

Nolan stayed silent, letting Isaac share at his own pace.

"What happened to him?" Luffy asked, his tone surprisingly gentle.

Isaac sighed, the weight of the memory pressing down on him. "He got sick. Really sick. Back then... we didn't have the means to save him. I tried to figure out ways to help, to learn everything I could, but it wasn't enough. He... didn't make it."

For a moment, the only sound was the rustling of leaves in the breeze. Luffy's face, usually so bright and full of mischief, had softened into an expression of genuine sympathy. "I'm sorry," he said quietly.

Isaac nodded, his gaze distant. "It's part of why I wanted to understand the world. I thought if I learned enough, I could stop things like that from happening. But... it's not always that simple."

Luffy's grin slowly returned, though it was softer this time. "If he was like me, he must've been a great guy."

Isaac couldn't help the faint smile that tugged at his lips. "He was."

Nolan smiled as well, glancing between Isaac and Luffy. "You know," he said lightly, "maybe you're not as heartless as you like to pretend."

Isaac rolled his eyes, but there was no real annoyance in his expression. Instead, he reached out and tousled Luffy's hair, earning a squawk of protest.

"You're not so bad, kid," Isaac said grudgingly.

Luffy's eyes lit up, his grin returning full force. "Does that mean you'll teach me how to throw stuff really fast?"

Isaac groaned, rubbing his temple. "Not a chance, even if I could."

Nolan laughed, and Luffy's infectious energy filled the air once more.