𝗚𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 & 𝗯𝗼𝗹𝘁𝘀 ┃One Piece [HIATUS]

34. New companion

It had been a couple of months after Enel left you in your illuminating solitude, you did not stop making useful little weapons, after all you needed a good arsenal for your next goal in your life. A store that you take with you on every trip, it wasn't anything special, there were many ships that offered that service, but at least you wanted to feel more innovative by not selling third party things but your own weapons or inventions.

Currently you had started your goal, you only traveled to a few nearby islands to get some clients, the sales were not bad but it was not an exponential growth either, especially if you did not move further from your home island. It bothered you a bit and it was an internal conflict to make the decision, but you ended up reasoning that you couldn't stay only in that area, no matter how much it hurt you, you needed to loosen the rope that kept you attached to that house.

It does not mean that you were not going to return, but the trips of a week would turn into trips of months or if the business really succeeds, years. Nothing was safe at this point in your life, so by taking a step forward, you plucked up the courage to leave what you called 'home' indefinitely.

You spent a good hour saying goodbye to your 'babies' —more like outdated gadgets you'd miss even though they're not even people— when you were done you closed the door behind you slowly, taking one last look at your property with a little smile.

"I hope that when I get back it hasn't caught fire..."

You smacked your cheeks because you were starting to get too sentimental, getting back to your homework, you took off that same morning aimlessly hoping you could live up to your expectations. After a few days, you stopped to restock on an island, you verified that there were several pirate ships but you didn't recognize any, which led you to think, how would that trio of idiots find themselves? You shrugged as you entered the local bar, those three know how to get by, you know this because you've seen them occasionally in the papers causing a stir on other islands.

The bar didn't seem very hectic at the moment, it wasn't night so it was pretty normal, what you didn't understand was because there also seemed to be a fair amount of marines loitering or coming in and out of the place, you assumed that a dangerous pirate was hanging around the area, but you didn't care.

You did some business with some people interested in your weapons, and you decided to get the hell out of there after you finished your meal, the atmosphere seemed to be intensifying on both sides, pirates and marines who started fighting outside a while ago.

"M-Miss?"

You looked down to see a girl dressed strangely too big, her pink hair covering much of her face, she had an adorable pout as she tugged at the sleeve of your shirt.

"Do you need something? Are you lost?"

"I-I'm scared and hungry! I lost my dad."

Ugh. You weren't really a fan of children ─because most of them cried too much─ but you weren't heartless enough to leave a girl crying over the loss of her father. You sighed with no other choice.

"What do you think if we do something, I ask you for a plate of food and then we look for your father?"

"Th-thank you very much!"

You patted her head, ordering more food to the table, you sat the little girl on your lap, at least she seemed to know how to use the cutlery to cut her own food, although you had to put her hair in a little ponytail because this girl ate too fast, you even thought she was more hungry and you decided to give her what little was left on your plate.

"Okay, do you remember where you last saw your father?"

"In the port."

You hummed in response, taking her hand to lead her on the way to the port, avoiding the fights and marines because they seemed to be interrogating people for some strange reason, when you arrived you turned to see the girl, who seemed to have a smirk decorating her face, her next words left you confused.