You might have known Gol D. Roger and his crew, right? While many in the crew are well-known after his execution but there is a certain crewmate that has never been heard of nor seen before. That is because they always disappear before the marines could ever know about it.
Let us see who is this mysterious person in Roger's crew . . .
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You were walking to your usual spot in the town square. When you reach there, the locals would greet you kindly and sometimes urge you to start telling a story.
You giggled and placed the papers in front of you once you finished setting up. You then started telling another tale to the ordinary folks nearby. They began to be manifested in your usual stories. This kind of event became normal the moment you started living on this island. Plus it's the only source of income for you to make a living.
You were only a child at that time and telling stories to people is the only thing you're good at. Ever since you defeated your grandfather and saved the people from your hometown in Wano, you have had to flee from your country. While you're happy here, you can't help but feel very lonely. It's been 5 years since you lost your parents and you were only 12 years old at that time.
After some time, a certain pirate crew kept hearing tales of your tales through other people and it piqued their curiosity so they decided to visit the island you were residing on after their adventure but coincidentally found the island on their way.
With the Roger Pirates
"Is this the island about the famous storyteller? The town doesn't seem anything special"
"Yea but maybe there might be treasure here!!"
Two confident boys were shouting at each other while the tall blonde man with a sword on his waist was watching from the side.
"Don't forget. We're here to get supplies" he yelled.
"Hahahahah!! Rayleigh, give the boys a bit of exploring. We were supposed to be here after our adventure but look where we are!! It's the very island where the origins of those stories are!!" The raven-haired male shouted.
"Hmm, from what I heard, the stories seem to stem from Wano so I'm curious about this mysterious person myself"
Rayleigh sighed. "Alright, fine. Exploring then we get supplies. I'm quite interested in this storyteller myself"
"Woohoo!! Shanks!! Buggy!! You two can explore with Oden and Toki!!" The raven-haired male shouted.
"Wow, thanks, captain!! Come on, Buggy!!" The red-haired boy shouted in joy while grabbing the blue-haired boy by the back of his shirt.
While the curious group was wandering around the town, they noticed the locals crowding around the town square.
"Hm? What's this occasion about?" Shanks asked.
"Don't know. Maybe we can ask the locals about it" Oden said and walked over to a nearby local to ask about the sudden occasion.
"Oh, you must be new here. Every day the storyteller will come here to tell us a story with their magic origami. Everyone here loves them which is how their stories spread far and wide outside of the island"
The four of them exchanged glances. The rumored storyteller is here?! They can't miss this opportunity so they tried to push through the crowd to get a better look and there you are. A person stood strumming their shamisen and blank papers turned to origami came to life as he played, wearing an outfit from Wano and a samurai sword on their waist.
Your outfit for now
The group was utterly mesmerized by the paper samurai battling with some sort of creature they don't know of and it won. They weren't listening to the story as they were more interested in your power.
When the story ended, everyone applauded and gave you the money as they dispersed. While you were busy collecting and counting the money, you didn't notice the group of four walking towards you.
"Excuse me. Are you the storyteller that everyone was talking about?"
You looked up and raised a brow. "And if I am?"
"How did you do that? The magic that all those paper that flew and moved by itself"
Your voice hitched. You were hesitant about whether to tell them or not. They don't seem to be someone suspicious so maybe you could . . .
"I use my shamisen to manipulate the origami with music. I can do other things with it but I don't have full control nor how to do it yet" you explained while also cautiously watching the situation silently.
"Wow, that is so cool!!" Shanks exclaimed with sparkles in his eyes. "Can you control other things besides origami? Or maybe you can do-"
"Calm down, Shanks. You're scaring the kid"
Everyone turned their attention behind them and saw the captain and the first mate walking toward the group in front of them.
Ah, that must be their acquaintances. I should take advantage of this and get out of here.' You thought as you sneakily walk away and left the scene while the group are talking.
"We met the storyteller that everyone's talking about!! They're right here!!" Shanks turned around but you weren't there.
"Eh? Where are they?"
"They must've run off because you're being too loud with your questions" Buggy snickered.
"That's enough, you two" Rayleigh stopped their bickering. "You've already done your exploring so let's go and get supplies"
"Oh, come on, Rayleigh. Give them a chance and we haven't got a good look at the kid who disappeared on us earlier"
He sighed. "Fine. We'll stay for a while but we'll leave once we got everything we need"
"Woohoo!! Thanks, captain!!"
Meanwhile, you were at your mountain cave, far away from the town. You changed your clothes into something comfortable.
Your new clothes
After you changed, you grabbed your father's sword and your shamisen and placed them on your back and waist. You noticed the red robes that look too small for your size. On its back is a symbol of a beetle. What you're holding right now are your old clothes from your father's palace who was once a legendary samurai well-known in Wano. While it may look old and tattered right now, it was the only clothes you had when you were a child and it was the only thing left behind by your father.
The shamisen is from your mother and you inherited her powers. You thought back to when you had to embark on a journey to find your father's armor to protect yourself from your grandfather who was once the Moon King, ruler of the night. Now he died as a mortal with no memories.
You graze lightly on the strings of your shamisen. It's been 5 years ever since your parents' death. Then you thought back to the group you encountered not too long ago.
They seem like an interesting bunch and you can't help but be curious about them. You heard they came here to see you because of the rumors and your stories. You admit that they are not the only ones who came here to see you. The Marines once came here to hear your stories and to confirm their curiosity. Hell, one of them tried to recruit you but Marine life isn't your thing so you refused.
You like the freedom you have and telling stories is the only thing you're good at but that doesn't mean you want to be a pirate. Being free is one thing but becoming a pirate is a different story.
You decided to check these people out of curiosity. You left your mountain cave and went back to the town.
When you reached there, you asked the locals about them. Most of them didn't know where they are until one of them told you that they saw the two of them go into the forest.
"Which direction were they heading?" you asked.
"They went that way"
You paled at the direction they pointed. "Doesn't that lead to . . .?"
"Yea. They went to the Mirroring Woods. I warned them not to go there because of its complicated pathways and mirrors but instead of being scared and turned back, they were excited and went inside. Worse of all, the sky is turning dark meaning that-"
"I know. 'They' will appear. I'll go and find them before the 'they' do" you said and ran to the Mirroring Woods.
The Mirroring Woods. The only forest that all the townsfolk do not want to enter. Not only are the pathways complicated with the twists and turns of the branch, but the natural mirrors also reflect them confusing to those who enter. No one knows what's on the other side of the forest but it was best to be left alone.
You had entered the forest before and barely managed to get out alive. Another reason why it's so dangerous is that vengeful spirits are wandering around in the woods. They were harmless as long as you don't provoke them however they will turn full-on aggressive to mortals at night. You were a bit lucky because you're half spirit. They did attack you at first because they smelled your mortal scent but when you attacked them with your shamisen, they backed off because they sensed authentic spiritual energy.
Haki and authentic spiritual energy are two different things. Similar but different.
However, the mortals aren't so lucky. Physical attacks don't work on them; if you're not careful enough, they will possess your body, and getting them out is hard.
They are vengeful spirits who used to be human once but died tragically so they didn't go to the afterlife/ Davy Jones' locker. They stayed here until they got their revenge or relieve their bloodlust and hatred to find peace.
You're the only one who somehow managed to calm them down thanks to your music. You even realized they like your company since they're lonely in the forest so you visit them sometimes. You like their company as well since you're lonely too.
When you reached the forest, you took out your shamisen and strummed it to find where they are. Once you found their location, you ran straight through the paths since you knew the way very well.
When you found them, the two people turned out to be the red-haired boy and the blue-haired boy whom you met at the town square. You raised your bachi and strummed your shamisen hard enough to push the spirits back. The boys noticed you and the red-haired shouted, "It's you!! You need to get back!! Physical attacks aren't effective against them!!"
You gave him a deadpan look. "I know. That's why I'm here. To get you both out of this forest. You were warned not to go but you still did. Are you guys idiots or something?"
The two boys sweatdropped. 'I feel like I'm getting lectured . . .' they thought.
"We heard that this forest is dangerous so there might be some treasure hidden here!!" the blue-haired boy said.
You gave him an unimpressed look and replied with silence.
"Why are you looking at me like that?!" he shouted.
You averted your attention from the spirits and replied blandly, "It's nothing"
"I know you're thinking of something!! Spit it out!!"
The red-haired boy held his friend back from going after you while you strum your shamisen and played the song to calm the spirits down.
(Cover song Shape of You, shamisen version)
The two boys watched in shock and amazement as the spirits calmed down and retreated. Once everything have finally settled down, you turned to the two boys and they flinched a little.
"Come on. Let's get you out of here. Those people must be worried about you since you've been gone for a while" you tilted your head telling them to follow you.
You went in the opposite direction and the two boys followed suit. There was silence while walking in this dark and creepy forest. You wanted to ask them something but the atmosphere is so awkward and you don't know what to say without any offense.
"Uhm . . .Thanks for saving us back there" the red-haired boy spoke up. "I'm Shanks and the one next to me is Buggy. What's your name?"
You turned over your shoulder and hummed in response. "I'm (Last Name) D. (First Name) but you can just call me (First Name)"
"Were you looking for us?"
"Yea. I was just curious about you and your group and that's how I knew about your little trail into the Mirroring Woods. The locals warned you about the dangers of it, didn't they? And the worse of it had to be at night. They became more aggressive even if you didn't provoke them. They'll try to possess your body to fulfill their bloodlust and revenge to be at peace which is why I visit here sometimes to calm them down with my spiritual music" you explained.
"Is there a way to dispel them or force them out of our bodies if we get possessed?"
You shook your head. "Unfortunately, no, and forcing them out of our bodies is hard and there's a risk that something may go wrong if we didn't do it right which is why it wasn't worth the risk. Plus haki can only slow them down at most"
They shuddered and shrieked in fear (Mostly Buggy). They were glad that you were there. Wouldn't want a spirit taking control of your body now, wouldn't you? The three of you talked more and managed to get to know each other on the way out of the forest. Once you're finally out, you found a group of people running toward you or more likely the boys behind you.
"Shanks!! Buggy!! Where were you? We've been looking all over for you and then the next thing we heard was you going into some dangerous woods that might get you killed" the blonde man scolded them then turned to you. "Thank you so much for bringing them back. I hope these two don't cause you too much trouble"
You waved both your hands frantically in denial. "Oh no!! Don't worry about it!! While they did carelessly walk into the woods despite the warnings, they can't help their curiosity to explore!!"
"Even so . . .thank you for going through the trouble, kid"
"Oh, it's you!!"
You and the blonde man looked over to the familiar samurai you'd met earlier at the town square.
"What do you mean, Oden?"
"That's the storyteller we told you about!!"
The blonde turned to you. "Is it true?"
"Yea, they even saved us from the spirits in the forest!!" Shanks answered for you.
"I'm amazed, kid!! Did you eat a devil fruit or something?" the raven-haired man asked.
"No, I didn't eat anything like that. I was just born from it" you replied, completely unsure and awkward.
"That looks cool!! You got to show us!! Please!!" Shanks pleaded with sparkles in his eyes. Even Buggy joined in.
"Quit it, you two. You've already given them enough trouble for today" the blonde said. "We haven't introduced ourselves yet, haven't we? My name is Rayleigh and the man next to me is Roger. The samurai behind us is Oden. You already met him at the town square"
"A pleasure to meet you. I'm (First Name)" you greeted with a quick nod.
"There's something I would like to know" Oden placed his thumb and index finger on his chin. "Those stories we heard of . . .they all seemed to have stemmed from Wano and they sounded familiar"
You nodded. "Yes, I am from Wano and my father is Hanzo who once served from the beetle palace"
"The beetle palace?! Now I know why it sounded familiar, your father is a legendary samurai who fought alongside his army survived a harsh blizzard, and still marched on. Not only that he's also very skilled in swordsmanship and archery. No one in Wano has ever heard what happened to them ever since"
"That . . ." you trailed off, your face turned into sadness.
"Y-you don't have to tell us if you're uncomfortable with it!!"
"No, it's okay. I don't know what happened to the beetle palace but I know what happened to my father. That's also why I tell stories. The stories of my father and his accomplishments. I heard them all from my mother. Both my parents were killed by my twin aunts, ordered by my grandfather"
"Oh . . ." Now the atmosphere became tense. "I'm sorry for your loss but . . .I have another question . . .what happened to your eye?"
"Oh, this?" you raised your hand and placed it on the eyepatch of your missing eye. "It's nothing. Don't think too much about it" you reassured him. Shanks knew that its something more than that but he didn't say anything because he might think its a sensitive topic.
"Hey, why don't you join my crew?" Roger asked which surprised you.
"No" you replied straight away.
"Why not? It's not like you have anything to do here"
"While I like freedom, I'm not comfortable with being a pirate"
"Come on!! You should join the crew!!" Shanks tried to persuade you.
"I refuse"
"I refuse your refusal" Roger crossed his arms.
You blinked and retorted, "I refuse your refusal to my refusal"
"Eh?! Why not?" Roger was shocked that you rebutted and said in annoyance.
"There's no way I'm gonna be a pirate"
Rayleigh patted your shoulder and you look up. "(First Name), I think you should accept the offer. Once our captain is onto something, he won't stop until he gets it plus he's very stubborn"
"Hahaha!! Come on, (First Name)!! Come join the crew!!" Roger laughed.
You sighed in defeat and agreed which made the Roger Pirates happy.
You took out your shamisen and strummed once causing you to disappear before you said, "I'll pack my stuff first before going to your ship"
The pirates' eyes widened when they witnessed your power. It was the first time they have seen it up close.
You teleported yourself back to the mountain cave since you're kinda lazy to walk back here. You packed all your stuff into your duffel bag which you bought it a few days ago and your old bag was all torn and ruined.
'Huh, who would have thought I would become a pirate? Maybe there is another story I can tell'
Author's note: IM FINALLY DONE!! I hope you like the first chapter!! Some parts are inspired by the book called Old Greatest Swordsman by theanimesimsons. Go check them out!!
The Roger Pirates might be a bit OOC so I apologized if I got their personalities wrong!!