One Piece: Mountain of Steel

I listen attentively as the barkeep reads out the newspaper to me. 

"Fire Fist Ace's bounty has been raised to 50 million belly, strange..." He hums quietly. 

"Oh! Himejima-san, you're in the newspapers!" 

I raise an eyebrow. 

"Is it about Kuro?"

"Yeah."

I sigh. 

"Forget it. I've already cashed in the bounty anyway." 

The bartender snorts. 

"I know, idiot. That's how you can pay me to read this stuff for you." 

Ignoring his petty sarcasm, I begin to think about my next objective. 

Since the papers have already been printed about my victory over Kuro, it means that my victory was relevant. 

Something important enough to be in the papers should be enough for me to get recruited, right?

I stand up. 

"Thanks for the help, bartender." 

He waves me off with a smile on his face. 

"Go get 'em, tiger." 

I march out the door with my money stacked neatly in a briefcase. 

It's finally time to join the Marines. 

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"So you're the man who killed Kuro?"

"Yes."

Captain Lowell glances up at my face, craning his neck backwards. 

"I believe it." 

After I asked to join, the Marine guarding the gate eagerly escorted me to his superior, which led to the current awkward situation. 

I was doing my best to be humble. 

It's hard when you're four feet taller than someone who is supposed to be your future superior. 

Captain Lowell sighs. 

"Alright, considering your achievements, I'll directly promote you to Chief Petty Officer." 

He shuffles the files in his hands. 

"I'm sure the current one will have no problem with it." 

"Also, sir?" 

"Yes?" 

I hesitate a little. 

"How... How would one go about rising through the ranks quicker?" 

The captain raises an eyebrow. 

"I suppose you would take down strong pirates. Kuro was considered strong around here, and you took him out in one hit." 

He looks up, thoughtfully thinking. 

"Arlong has been wreaking some havoc. If you take him out, along with his entire crew, that would certainly warrant a promotion." 

"Also, do you know about our Headquarters training camp?" He asks. 

I scratch my head. 

"No, I've never heard of it." 

"It's an elite place where only the most talented go to train. The instructor is the legendary Black Fist Zephyr himself." 

The captain sighs sadly again. 

"Unfortunately, I was not deemed talented enough. But you might be able to get in." 

He eyes me thoughtfully. 

"The training camp is a place where legends are born. Most of the vice-admirals went there, along with the current admirals." 

"If you can go there, it is highly likely your rank will at least rise to Vice-Admiral." 

I lean forward. This sounds like the perfect opportunity. 

"How do I get in?" 

Captain Lowell laughs, a genuine, heartfelt laugh. 

"It's quite simple." 

He stands up to look me in the eyes. 

"Bring peace to the East Blue." 

I blink. 

"What?"

He waves me off. 

"Nah, I was just joking. Kill or capture Arlong and Buggy within two months. It should be easy work for you. Afterwards, I'll recommend you for the camp."

"Alright!" 

I stand up, the ceiling surprisingly accommodating. 

"Where are they?" 

Captain Lowell tosses me a map. 

"Captain, I'm blind." 

He blinks. 

"Oh shit, my bad. I'll send a navigator to take you to their bases then." 

"Kama!" He yells out. 

"Coming~"

A tall, freckled woman bounds into the room.

She radiates happy energy, and it is a sight for blind eyes after talking for so long with the depressing Captain Lowell. 

"Your job is to take Chief Petty Officer Himejima to these areas." 

The captain tosses her the map. She unfurls it, and I can feel her eyes widen. 

"Captain... aren't these the bases of..."

"Yes, yes." Lowell waves it off. 

"He can handle it." 

The girl glances at me, clearly unsure. 

"Alright, then..."

"Go on! Stop wasting my time!"

Captain Lowell waves her out, lighting a cigarette. 

Giving me a nervous look, she bounds out of the room. 

"Follow me, Himejima-san!" 

As she leaves the room, I begin to follow. 

"No mercy for pirates, Himejima." 

The captain's ice-cold voice chills me to the bone. 

"Even if they beg and plead, remember that they are pirates. They take, they plunder, they kill. They do not deserve to exist." 

"Kill every one you see, and rising through the ranks will be the least of your worries."

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"So...you're blind?"

Kama questions me. 

After boarding a small boat, we began sailing towards the first target, the Buggy Pirates. 

"Yeah." 

"Then how do you see?"

"I don't."

She looks back at me from the helm, a deadpan look on her face. 

"How do you know where everything is? You can walk around just fine, can't you?" 

"I can sense vibrations I make." 

She makes a face, mouth opening into an 'o'. 

I raise an eyebrow. 

"You don't seem to be very surprised." 

"Well, I've seen crazier stuff." 

Kama sighs and scratches her head.

Everyone seems to scratch their head a lot at this base. 

"The man we're facing? He's a man who ate the Bara Bara no Mi." 

"A devil fruit?"

I had been informed by the sailors of these mysterious fruits. 

Mostly known as myth in the four Blues, they were undoubtedly real. Giving you a mysterious power in exchange for your ability to swim, they were considered treasures of the sea. 

"Yeah. It gives him the ability to split his body and control his body parts, as well as making him immune to slashes and stabs."

I frown. 

"That seems like an extremely troubling ability. Why is his bounty so low?"

Kama laughs. 

"Well, even with his powers, he can be hit by blunt force, so he has a clear weakness. Not only that, I've heard that he isn't very intelligent." 

I nod. Lack of intelligence means that no matter how powerful you are, it should be easy for you to be killed or captured. 

"Whelp, looks like the debriefing is over. We're almost there anyways. Give me a boost." 

"Stone Breathing, Esoteric Art"

My flail begins to spin. 

"Rising Updraft!"

Our small ship skips off, dashing over the calm waves. 

------------------------------------------------------------

5 hours later

"And... there it is! Orange Town!" 

Kama triumphantly points at the island in front of us. 

"This is where Buggy the Clown was last seen. Unfortunately, we didn't have enough manpower to go after him, but now you can take care of it!" 

I get up from my meditative pose, unhooking my weapons. 

"No worries." 

A calm expression stretches across my face. 

"Just wait here for me when I'm done." 

As I leap off the boat, Kama calls out to me. 

"And make sure to leave his head! It's worth quite a bit~"

I sigh as I make my way towards Orange Village. 

I suppose a bit of money wouldn't hurt...