Chapter 85: Something About Us

This was a very awkward situation.

Rick was in his bed, under the covers with a pack of ice on his genitals. What was more awkward was the rest of the crew all looking at him, clearly not happy with his actions. The silence was heavy.

“Okay, this silence and your stares are making me quite uncomfortable.” said the vice-captain.
““““...”””””
“Will that go on for…”
“So all this time you were alive.” cut in Sanji.
“No I wasn’t.”
““““...”””
“Explain.” said Usopp, saying aloud what everyone thought.
“Well… After I stayed behind at Marine Ford, I fought a few vice-admirals and Akainu. I dealt with the former and… lost against the latter. As he was about to deliver the finishing blow he taunted me and I lost it like I did on Thriller Bark.”
“He pushed the Robin button.” stated Franky, having a good idea what the now fleet Admiral told Rick.
“What?”
“Nevermind, continue.”
“When I came back to, I was stuck with my back into a wall. Grandpa, Uncle and big sis were there. I knew that was the end, and after a few words exchange, everything went black. I guess that’s when I died.”
“And?” asked Zoro.
“And next thing I knew, I was butt naked on the floor of Sunny’s garden.”
“Wait! The garden?” exclaimed Robin who had a genuine expression.
“Yes ?”
“Oh my god!”
“What is it?” asked Usopp.
“The seed!”
“What about the seed?” said Rick, puzzled.
“The what now?” asked Franky but was ignored by Robin.
“I planted it.”
“You what?!” questioned Rick bewildered.
“I planted it.”
“Okay, once again, what seed are the two of you talking about?” asked an irritated Franky.
“I…” began Rick looking at Robin not knowing what he should say.
“Rick gave me a seed of himself.” the brunette said.
“Again, a what now?”
“Unlike Robin, when I sprout parts of my body they don’t appear like that. A seed appears first then it germinates into a sprout then blooms into the body parts I wish for.”

To make them understand, he raised his hands and made a seed appear in the middle of the bed and used it to show them the process.

“Okay, I get it. Doesn’t help understand the problem here.”
“I have to will it for the seed to sprout. Otherwise it’s just a seed forever. It only disappears if I will it too.”
“Back on Sabaody Archipelago, Rick gave me a seed of himself as… a joke. And when I learned that he… well I planted it. I don’t know what I was expecting. Actually I didn’t expect anything, I just nurtured and watered the seed until one day a flower began to sprout.”
“Wait a minute! You’re talking about the big ass plant that you came with on the Sunny?” realized the cyborg.
“Yes, but I don’t understand how Rick could be… born out of it? The flower never bloomed in two years and it wasn’t ready to bloom anytime soon at the speed it was growing.”
“Yes, I think we remember that.” said Nami, entering the conversation.
“So I don’t know how Rick came out of it.”
““Eeeeeehhhhhh…””

Everyone turned to Usopp and Chopper.

“We may be at fault here.”said Chopper
“What did you do?” asked Sanji.
“We wanted to plant Robin’s flower into the garden.” began Usopp.
“But after two years everything was dead and the soil…”
“Was completely dead.” completed Rick.
“Yes, so Chopper remembered about the clouds you brought back from Skypiea.”
“I remembered you telling me that the growth of any plants with the clouds as soil would be exponential.”
“That’s correct. So you planted the flower in it and its growth accelerated so much that I was… born again.”
“That’s insane.” said Sanji.
“Yeah, but I don’t have another explanation. That would make sense though, I’m a seed man after all.”
“That you are.” said Nami with a knowing look.
“Hmm?” was all Rick said not knowing what his kitten was talking about.
“Nothing, it’s a story for later. Now what happened next?” asked Robin.
“Well….”

*Flashback*

“Where the… Sunny?” said Rick, recognizing his surroundings.

“How the hell am I still alive?”

Getting himself up he exited the garden and went to his room to put some clothes on. Once dressed he went to the dining room to see if someone was there but found no one. By getting on the deck he knew where he was.

“Fishman island… I wonder how much time passed since I died. Is it their first visit?”

Taking a better of the scenery Rick recognized the trees of the Sea Forest.

“Well… it must be their first time here since the Sunny wouldn’t be abandoned here in the first place. That means at least a couple years had passed. I wonder what has changed.”

He thought about what to do now. Resurrecting wasn’t really in his plan.

“What should I do? Regroup with the others or…”

He stopped mid-thought and opened the system. Looking at his avatar screen the same warning as before was displayed.

“So I’m still dying…. Great… I guess joining the others is off the table.”

He opened the shop and searched for a new version of the Imperfect body. Vegapunk estimated that it would take one to two years to find a solution to the I.B. lifespan problem, and if Luffy had followed his advice that was exactly the length of the time lapse Rick was having.

“Imperfect Body V3… V4?”

He kept scrolling down and was surprised that the I.B. series went on to eleven. Each version being more expensive than the other the higher and newer the version. Each had its pros and cons but the V11 was interesting with its life expectancy of around 40 years.

“Yeah… fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. I saw you mister ‘around’ and I’m not trusting you.”

Around 40 years of life was a good deal, being currently 28, it would die at least in his sixties at worst. The problem was still the same however: no haki. He didn’t buy the V11, no he scrolled down again, hoping for something more and was not disappointed.

[Perfect Body V.1]

Description:

The magnum opus of the genius Dr. Vegapunk.
After two years of failures ( giving birth to the I.B series from V3 to V11) the Perfect Body V1 was achieved, through the use of the blood of the D clan.

The Perfect Body V1, like its name suggests, is perfect in every way. The vessel is big enough to contain the power of two devil fruits and at the same time the use of Haki.

“Well that’s great!” thought Rick.

The life expectancy of the Perfect Body V1 is that of an average human: 85 years. The age process is slower allowing a peak fighting condition for a longer time. Strength, speed, and stamina are at the peak of the human body (providing training and constant maintenance of the body).

Rick was ecstatic. Finally, the body he dreamt off since he was seven was a reality. It was within reach. The only thing he had to do was pay the price.

“150M Karma points! That’s expensive!”

In comparaison the I.B. V11 was worth 3M Karma points. That was okay though, as the benefits of the Perfect Body far outweigh the price. The simple ability to use Haki was worth every single point of those 150M easily. Now Rick wouldn’t not be relegated as a support character in the crew.

“Now, how many points do I have left?”

Looking up he saw how much he had. After buying the Tenki Tenki no mi which cost a whopping 500M, he wasn’t sure that he had enough funds.

[ User’s Karma: 182 333 765 ]

Seeing the number he sighed in relief.

“Thank god I have enough.”

He didn’t wait further and immediately bought the Perfect Body V1.

[You bought [Perfect Body V1] for 150M Karma Points]

[Karma points remaining: 32 334 849]

[Changing current body to [Perfect Body]]

[1 %]...

[5%]...

[25%]...

[90%]...

[100%]

[Body change from [Imperfect Body V2] to [Perfect Body V1] complete]

Rick took a deep breath and tried to feel the changes. He was feeling somehow lighter, like a burden had been lifted from his shoulders. Most importantly he felt right. It was an indescribable feeling but it was like finally being complete.

“I’m feeling good… Wow, Vegapunk is really a genius. Should I send him a thank you card? Probably not, he might ask to study me further since I’m still a miracle, being alive instead of dead. Now that I think  about it I wonder how he tests the abilities of the bodies. Life expectancy, haki… how can he be so sure of that in just two short years?”

As he was about to close the system something caught his eyes.

“ 32 334 849 karma points left? That doesn’t make sense. I had 182 333 765 before my purchase and the P.B. V1 cost was 150M. Where does the 1084 difference come from?”

Opening the log he found his answer.

“So my little freedom speech did work some, since after buying the Tenki Tenki no mi my Karma went down to around 157M and I had 182M and some before my purchase.Good to know that my little plan worked somehow. I wonder how Uncle reacted when he found out.”

Taking the air thanks to his gravity, Rick went straight to Ryugu Palace.

“Luffy, I love you but there is no way I’d let you steal Shirahoshi’s heart. The mermaid princess is mine and mine alone. She may be not as pretty as Robin but an 11 meters tall mermaid with big boobs is the dream. There is no way I’d pass up on motorboating those puppies and take a good rest on them. I can hardly wait for Robin and I to tie this perfect submissive up.”

While Nami was a bit submissive she still had her fiery temper. She couldn’t hold a candle to the pure and innocent Shirahoshi.

~~~~~

Infiltrating the palace has not been easy. Not in a difficult way but more of an annoying way. First the entrance; one needed to ring some kind of door bell for the door to be opened. Fortunately, the “sun” wasn’t up yet and Rick was able to use his gravity to open the door, enter and put it back in its place without being seen. The new challenge he faced was, finding the tower Shirahosi was in while being mostly in the dark.

After thinking about it he admitted that searching blindly was not in his best interest and changed his plan.

“It would be better to first raid the treasure room to avoid some problems later. Then search for my little mermaid!”

Just like he did on Thriller Bark, he found an open window and sprouted an eye high on the opposite wall. From there he sprouted more and more eyes, mapping a good chunk of the palace. When he saw guards, he sprouted an ear to listen to any conversation they might have. It took some time but he finally found what he was looking for. The treasure room was guarded by two guys. Fortunately for him the ceiling of the place was really high, probably because of the height of the royal family, so with no difficulty he reached his destination without getting sighted. He sprouted an arm at the hand of the corridor and made some noise attracting the guards attention, who went taking a look.

With the door now unguarded he entered the room and realized how of a critical failure this plan had been. He couldn’t take everything with him as of now as there was no way he could get out of here with all the treasure and at the same time paying a visit to Shirahoshi. After picking up a few things he could carry in his pocket, he exited the room.

The guards were still absent as he was leading them farther and farther away. It took to flying close to the ceiling again and continued his search when one of his sprouted eyes had a glimpse of the tower Shirahoshi was in by looking outside a window. The edifice was easy to identify as plenty of weapons were embedded into its walls. It couldn’t access it from the outside though as the tower was surrounded by water. The only way for him to get inside would have been by finding the way through the palace. That wasn’t a complex task and soon enough was in front of a gigantic door. Just like with the treasure room he had distracted the guards and had a few minutes to sneak in the princess’ bedroom.
“Now… How should I approach this situation? Can’t walk on her like Luffy did.”

He opened the door and went inside and it was pitch black, limiting his options. He raised his arms in front of him and walked slowly forward. After a dozen metter his hands made contact with something warm. He let them fumble a bit when what he was touching moved.

“Just like I thought, it was her tail. Quite nice.”

“Who’s there?” asked a melodious voice.

Next thing he knew he was violently blinded by the light from the ceiling that was turned on.

“Haaaaa!”
“Haaaa!”
“My eyes!”
“Who are you!”

Rubbing his eyes, Rick completely ignored Shirahoshi. It certainly was going the way he had planned it.

“Have you come to Kill me too? I’ll have you know that I’m not afraid of you! I’m the daughter of King Neptune and I’m not afraid! “ she said with a fierce face before breaking character immediately by crying.
“Help! Father! Brothers!”

“Yeah… So much for avoiding that by doing differently than Luffy. Guess it’s time to use my secret weapon then.”

He sprouted multiple hands on the mermaid princess’ head and began patting her.

“There, there.” he said.
“I’m not here to hurt you, miss.”
“You’re… not?” replied Shirahosh,i calming down thanks to the patting.
“No, I didn’t even know you were here, I thought it was the treasure room.”
“The treasure room?”
“Yes, with all those weapons stuck on the tower I thought that people thought to get what was inside. And I thought it was gold.”
“Really? You came here for the palace treasure? Not to assassinate me?”
“Yes!”
“...”
“...”
“Sorry to disappoint you, there is just me here, no treasure.”
“I’m not sure about that, not all treasures are made of gold.” said Rick with a grin, making Shirahoshi blush.

Finding her calm enough he made his hands on her head disappear.

“Ho!” exclaimed the princess.
“What is it?”
“Something was caressing my hair and it suddenly stopped. It was quite nice.”
“Oh! That? That was me.”
“You?”
“Yes”.

Rick sprouted an arm in front of her and explained his powers.

“I can make copies of any part of me wherever I want. Since you were agitated I made some hands on your head to pat it and calm you down.”

Shirahoshi just looked at the tiny arm in front of her. He could see she wanted to ask for more patting but was too shy to ask.

“Do you want me to continue?”
“I…”
“It’s alright, I don’t mind.” he said with a heartfelt smile.

She bit her lips and nodded slightly while blushing. It was enough for Rick, who did what she wanted.

“Poor thing, stuck in this tower for a decade or more with only her family visiting from time to time. She must be starved for some physical contact.”

Shirahoshi was in her own world enjoying silently, with her eyes closed, what she had craved so much for years.

“I guess I should introduce myself, my name is R….”
“R ?”
“Ha! No! I… I was going to tell you my name, but I’m a pirate so it might not be the best idea. You can call me… Vega! Yes Vega, it’s perfect.”
“You’re a pirate?” said Shirahoshi, getting agitated again.
“Yes, but a good one I swear!”
“There are good pirates?”
“They are rare but yes.”
“What’s the difference between a good and a bad pirate?”
“Well… The bad pirate is selfish. They don’t care if they hurt innocent people to get what they want. Sometimes, they even enjoy it.”
“And the good pirate?”
“Hmm… They are more interested in adventure, finding treasure, making friends, sometimes stealing gold, sure. But they don’t hurt good people.”
“...”
“...”
“Shirahoshi.”
“Yes?”
“That’s my name.”
“Well, Shirahoshi, nice to meet you!” said Rick putting his hand in front of him for a handshake.

The princess raised her hand and with her thumb and index shaked his. She seemed happy.

“I’m sorry I woke you up, Shirahoshi. I’ll let you go back to sleep, I have treasure to find!” said Rick as he waved at her, made his hands disappear from her head once again and started leaving. He didn’t get far as the giant mermaid caught him in her hands.

“Please stay!” she said with her eyes watering.

Fortunately for him, his back was turned to her and she didn’t see the very evil and satisfied smile on his lips.

“I caught myself a mermaid~~ I caught myself a mermaid!~~ Sanji will be so jealous about it.”
“I… Okay I can stay a bit.”

Shirahoshi released him and he floated towards her lap, close to her knees.

“You can fly?” she said, astonished.
“No, it’s more like, I’m making myself float and use gravity to push me where I want to go.”
“Gravity?”
“I’m a gravity man.” said Rick.

He raised his right hand and attracted to him an object that was sitting on the nightstand near the princess then pushed it back. That amazed her and made her confused.

“You can also manipulate gravity?”
“Yes.”
“Are all humans like you?”
“Oh, no, not at all. Some humans may have some powers, but they are all different. I'm unique because I have two.”
“Oh!”
“You don’t seem very knowledgeable about humans.” remarked Rick, prompting Shirahoshi to lower her head in sadness.
“I've been stuck here for the past twelve years.”
“Twelve years?!”

“That’s… different. If I remember it correctly I thought it was ten.”

“Shirahoshi, I’m sorry if I’m being rude for asking this but… How old are you?”
“Eighteen, why?”

“Eighteen! Oh My Goddess! She’s eighteen! Change of plan!”

“So you’ve been locked in here since you were 6! Who does that?! That’s wrong!”
“It- it’s not father’s fault!” the princess said, defending her father.
“Your father did this to you?! That’s it! I’m kicking his ass!”
“No please!” she yelled, grabbing the ex-marine in her hands again while crying.
“But..”
“He… He did it to protect me.”
“... From what?”
“There is a bad pirate with the Mato Mato curse.”
“The Mato Mato curse?”
“Yes, the curse allows him to aim at whichever target he touched with his hands. He touched me when I was six, and ever since he's been sending…”
“Those awful axes stuck on the tower’s wall?”

Shirahosi didn’t say anything, she just nodded. Making Rick fake a sigh.

“Fine, I won’t kick your father’s ass…. But I’ll deal with that pirate!” declared the straw hat’s vice-captain making the mermaid princess smile. Looking up at her, trying to focus on her eyes as her breasts were in the way, he simply asked her.

“Do you want to get out of here?”

She didn’t immediately give an answer, instead she kept quiet until she finally found the courage to speak.

“I-I… I can’t. It’s not safe.”
“Shirahoshi, I’m not asking you if you can or not, I’m asking you if you want to.”
“I… Yes…” she replied in a whisper.
“Then I’ll take you outside.”
“But the…”
“It’s okay, I’ll protect you.” the ex-marine announced, after floating up right in front of her face, so close that by extending his arm half its reach he could touch her nose.”
“I may be small, but I’m plenty strong.”
“...”

Shirahoshi didn’t know what to say. She always wanted to go outside to visit her mother’s grave and pay her respects but with her situation she never could. No one could protect her from the weapon flying towards her. She wanted to say yes, with every fiber of her being but couldn’t. Rick suddenly touched one of her cheeks with his hand.

“I’ll protect you, I promise.”

His voice was sweet and warm but most of all was full of confidence. The same confidence she saw in his eyes. She wanted to believe in it.
And she did.

“Please, Mister Vega, bring me outside, I want to visit my mother’s grave.”
“Sure. But it’s just Vega to you! Not mister.”
“But…”
“You don’t call friends Mister Shirahoshi.”
“Friends?!”
“Yes, what? You don’t want to be friends?”
“No! I mean yes! Yes, I want us to be friends.” she said sheepishly.
“Good! We’re friends then!”
“Just like that?”
“Just like that. Why? Do you want to do something to become friends?”
“No, it’s just… my only friend is Megalo…” she said with a sad voice as a giant shark pet came from behind her bed and approached her.
“If you want we can seal our friendship with a kiss.” Rick joked.
“A-a-a  K-k-...” tried to say the princess but her mind was clearly melting.
“I’m joking! I’m joking! A Hug, a handshake or even a fist bump is fine!”

Shirahoshi sighed in relief and extended her fist.

“Friends?” she asked.
“Friends!” replied Rick with a smile.

Realizing that for the first time in more than a decade she had made a friend, Shirahoshi giggled happily with happy tears in the corner of her eyes.

“You really do cry a lot.” teased the ex-marine embarrassing the mermaid.
“I…”
“It’s alright, cry all you want. It’s not good to bottle up your feelings for too long. But there is a time and place for that.”
“I’m sorry. I’m just… weak.” she said in shame.
“Aww, Shishi, don’t be ashamed. There is nothing to be ashamed of.”
“But I’m..”
“I met an old man once on a sky island I visited. He was a fierce warrior, and yet he felt shame and guilt for being weak and unable to protect his people. Do you know what I told him?”
“N-no.”
“There is no shame in being weak. Everyone one day has been weak, or will be. Everyone. That’s why there is no shame in that. The only reason you should be ashamed is knowing you are weak and do nothing about it.”
“Then what should I do?”
“First, try not to cry at everything, like people berating you. That’s a good start. Stand straight, and firm.”
“O-Okay…”
“What’s important is to have faith in yourself. And if you ever doubt, that’s alright your friends would support you.”
“Really?”
“Yes! If they don’t, then they’re not really your friends”.

That answer seemed to satisfy her and she stopped crying before letting out a small and cute yawn.

“Go back to sleep Shishi, I’ll wake you up when we’re going.”
“It’s the second time you’re calling me that.”
“What? Shishi?”
“Yes.”
“Your name is long, so I gave you a cute nickname.”
“I… like it.” she said, laying on her bed.
“Mister Vega?”
“Just Vega.”
“Can you pat my head more please?”
“Sure.”

This time he used his own hand and not sprouts, to do it and the mermaid princess went back to the dream world with a blissful smile on her face.

~~~~~

“Shishi, wakey wakey. It’s time to go.” said Rick, shaking Shirahoshi’s cheek.

The princess woke up and took her surroundings in, with her eyes landing on Rick.

“Hello again, Mister Vega.”
“Just Vega.”
“Did I sleep long?”
“A few hours. I wanted to wake you up sooner but I couldn't bring myself to do it.”
“Why?”
“You were too adorable, sleeping the way you did.” was the honest answer he gave, making her blush a bright red.
“The guards brought you some food earlier.”
“They didn’t see you?”
“I hid under the blanket.”

That information made her blush even harder.

“How are we going to leave, I’m big, the guard will see me from far away.”
“Well… I thought of that and I have to say, you’re really a lucky lady.”
“Why is that?”
“Because I have with me the solution to this problem.”

Opening his coat he brought out a fruit. It was the Mini Mini no mi that he had bought all those years ago for her.
“This is the Mini Mini no mi. The person who eats it can shrink their size at will.”
“You mean, I could be the same size as you?”
“Yes, but that’s not all. You could even become so small that people would need a magnifying glass to see you. You could sneak wherever you want!”
“Really?!”
“Yes!”
“So, I’ll have to shrink myself a lot so you could bring me out?”
“Yes, but it’s day time now, so the risk of me getting caught by the guards is rather high.”
“What should we do then?”
“I thought that you could shrink into a size small enough you could hide in my breast pocket. As for my own escape, I planned to ask for Megalo’s help?”
“Megalo?” said Shirahoshi, surprised, with Megalo by her side confused.
“Megalo is big, and the guards are used to seeing him come and go right?”
“Well, yes.”
“If it’s okay with him, I’d like to hide inside his mouth. At least until we’re out of the palace and back into the island bubble.”
Shirahoshi looked at Megalo who looked at her back and nodded.
“He’s okay with that.”
“Goog! Now, the fruit.” Rick said, handing the fruit to her.
“Fair warning the fruit doesn’t taste…” he didn’t have the time to finish as the princess ate it in a single bite.
“The taste is awful.” she said.
“... Okay… Hmm. Try wishing to… I don’t know, be smaller?”

The mermaid closed her eyes and in a moment shrunk to the point of being the same height as Rick.
“Did it work?” she asked with her eyes still closed.
“Open your eyes and look for yourself.”

She opened one eye then a second, and saw Rick just in front of her. Quickly looking at herself she contemplated her new form. She was ecstatic and hugged Rick.

“I’m small! Thank you Mister Vega! Megalo! Look! Look! I’m small!”

“Okay, that’s weird, the Mini Mini no mi changes the default height of the person who eats it, making them around 20 cm tall. What didn’t she change when the fruit took effect?”

“Not that small Shishi. You’re about my height.”
“Oh! I.. I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine I’m just pulling your leg or rather your tail actually.”
“Pulling my tail?”
“It’s a human idiom. ‘Pulling someone’s leg’ means making fun of that person.”
“Oh, I get it.”
“Shishi, you need to get smaller.”
“How small?”
“Hmm… Small enough to stand on my hand ?”

She nodded and soon enough shrank and shrank until she reached around 10 cm.

“Is it good enough?”
“It’s perfect.”

Rick bent over forward and extended his hand so Shirahoshi could jump on his palm. He then straightened himself and put her in his breast pocket.

‘Is it comfortable enough?”
“Yes, and it’s warm.”
“Good. Megalo, it’s your turn now."

~~~~~

The plan worked. The guards didn’t even pay attention to the big friendly shark.
They exited the palace and reached fishman island, where Rick led Megalo to a secluded place where he could get out of the latter’s mouth and let Shirahoshi go back to her normal size.

“We’re out, Shishi. How do you feel?”

She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. A content smile drew on her lips.

“Free.”
“Don’t forget that moment.”
“I don’t think I ever will, Mister Vega.”
“So, where are we going?”
“To the Sea Forest, that’s where my mother is buried.”
“Lead the…”

Rick abruptly turned around, and used his gravity to push onto the ground a flying object who came his way. It turned out to be an axe with the mark of a rose on it, just like the axes on the tower Shirahoshi was locked up, had.

“Mister Vega…”
“I promised you that I would protect you. I keep my promises.” he said with a smile which the mermaid answered with her own.

The trio began their little stroll towards their destination, surprisingly Shirahoshi chose to not go back to her original size and settled with a height of  2.5m. When Rick tried to pry as to why she only gave him a

“I like this size.” while blushing.

He knew there was more to it but didn’t push the issue further. In less than an hour they arrived at the grave. Surprisingly the Sunny could be seen not far from there. What surprised them more (though not for Rick as he already knew) was that Jimbei was waiting at the grave.

“Jimbei?”
“You know Sir Jimbei?”
“He’s a friend of mine.”
“Really?!”
“Yes, let's greet him.”

They landed behind him silently and Shirahoshi called out to him.

“Sir Jimbei!”

The ex-shichibukai turned around to see who called his name. His eyes went out of their orbit when he saw the mermaid.

“PRINCESS?!”
“Hello.” she simply said with a small wave of her hand.
“Why are you so small?! And why are you here? It's dangerous!”
“I wanted to visit mother.” said Shirahoshi who began to tear up but stopped when shi felt Rick’s hand patting her back.
“And It’s not dangerous, Mister Vega is here to protect me.” she added and pointed to Rick by her side.
When Jimbei finally had a good look at the person on his princess side he went deathly pale.

“B-b… But you died!”
“I did.”
“You did?” asked Shirahoshi.
“Yes, but I came back. It’s not the first time. I’m slowly getting used to it.”

*Flashback Interruption*

“WAIT A MINUTE!” screamed Usopp.

He pointed an accusatory finger at Jimbei who was in the room.

“You knew ?!”
“Ehhhhh.” was the only answer the fishman could formulate while he began sweating because of the pressure the stares of the crew were emitting.
“It’s not his fault.” came Rick in his defense.
“Why do you mean it’s not his…”
“I asked him to not say anything.”
“Why?” asked Luffy.
“Let me finish the story first.”

Everyone ignored the fact that for the last half hour, Rick talked about how Shirahoshi knew about Rick being alive too and yet did not tell them.


*Flashback*

“When?! And How?!” asked Jimbei.
“About… a few hours ago? I don’t know about the how.”
“Do the others know?”
“The others?” asked Shirahoshi
“My friends and crewmates. And Jimbei, they must not know.”
“Why?! Do you know how much Luffy…”
“I know! Who do you think you’re talking to? He’s my brother and my captain! Of course I know.”
“Then why?!”

Rick sighed then took a look at his mermaid friend.

“Shishi, would you mind giving us a moment please?”
“Of course Mister Vega.” she replied before moving a few feet away.

“Mister Vega?”
“That’s the name I gave her and before you say anything I told her it wasn't my real name.”
“... I have so many questions right now.” said the fishman.
“And I probably know all of them and their answers. So let me talk.”
“Okay, go ahead.”
“First: yes I died. It was too freaking people for it to have been a dream.
Two: No, I don’t know why I’m still alive, honest.
Three: I found Shirahoshi when I… was exploring Ryugu Palace.”
Four: I was exploring the palace to… borrow some money from the treasure room, so I could pay a merchant ship to bring me back to the surface.”
Five: I didn’t find the treasure room but I did find a treasure.”

He said while pointing with his thumb towards Shirahoshi behind him who was talking with Megalo. His other hand has all his fingers deployed, as he extended one each time he counted.

“Six: We became friends, that’s why I call her Shishi.
Seven: Two years ago, I knew I had, at best, a month left to live. Now I died, the crew mourned me and they moved on...”
“But you’re.. Here.” interrupted Jimbei.
“And I still feel myself dying. Do you really want me to get back into their lives just so they have to mourn me again a month later? That’s cruel, Jimbei.”
“... Are you sure about...”
“Yes, I’m sure. I had the feeling back then, I have the same feeling now.”
“Hell…”
“Yes, you can say that.”
“Why did you bring Shirahoshi here?”
“She’s been locked inside her room for more than half her life. Children should be free, Jimbei. I can protect her.”

Just as he talked about his ability to protect her, another axe came flying. He took care of it the same way it took care of the other before.

“See? She’s safe with me. And It’s not like she’d never go back. She just wanted to see her mother.”

Jimbei looked at his princess and sighed in acceptance.

“There will be chaos..”
“Oh, please! Luffy is on the island. What did you think would happen with him around?” Rick said with a smirk making his friend laugh.
“You’re probably right. I do hope you’re wrong though.”
“Yeah… I’m never wrong.”
“If you don’t want to meet with your crew, you should go, I’m supposed to meet them here.”
“You take care of her?”
“Of course.”

With the conversation over, both walked towards Shirahoshi and Megalo.

“Is everything alright she asked?”
“Yes, Shishi, everything is fine.”
“Princess, I still don’t know how you became so…”
“Small?”
“Yes”
“Mister Vega gave me a fruit giving me the power to change my size!” said the mermaid proudly and did a demonstration before returning to her height of 2.5.

Jimbei’s jaw hung on the floor before turning to Rick and grabbing him by the collar, furious.

“You gave her a devil fruit! Are you mad she’s a mermaid!”
“Yes, so?”
“SO MERMAID LIVES IN WATER!”
“I don’t see your point!”
“Because she ate the devil fruit she can’t swim in water anymore!”

That information stunned Rick into silence. He spent so much time flying around that he forgot that little tidbit of info about the devil fruit.

“Oh… I think I screwed up.”

Jimbei was ready to murder him here and there when Shirahoshi intervened.

“Hmm. Sir Jimbei, I can swim.”
“Princess, people who ate a devil fruit are cursed by the sea devil and can’t swim anymore.”
“But I can! I had to swim to get here from the island!”

Both guys looked at her as if she had two heads.

“Oh my goddess, she did!” exclaimed Rick.
“Really?!”
“Yes!”
“But… How?!”
“I don’t know!”

The fishman let the ex-marine go and both looked at the mermaid with a tone of question flooding their minds.

“Hmm… Is it… bad?”
“No Shishi, it’s great. That means you won’t have to live out the water forever. But there is a problem…”
“If people knew that you can swim and that you ate a devil fruit, they would stop at nothing to capture you and study you.”
“I’m sorry Shishi, I said I’d protect you and I just painted a bigger target on your back.”
“It’s alright.” was all she said. Surprising both Rick and Jimbei with her smile.
“Princess?”
“Shishi?”
“I’m the mermaid princess of the Ryugu Kingdom. People have been after me the moment I was born. What’s a few more? Besides, you promised to protect me, so I’m not afraid.”

They looked at her strangely. Jimbei was moved.

“You grew into such a strong lady, princess. Your mother would be proud.” he said with a lot of emotion in his voice.”
“Tsk. She was always strong but since she was locked up in that tower nobody ever saw it. Look at her, outside for less than half a day and she’s already putting us to shame with her strong heart.”

That made Jimbei laugh hard.

“You’re right. I’m sorry princess.”
“I-it… It’s fine Sir Jimbei, I’m not that strong anyway..”
“And the shy part of her is back.” stated Rick in a deadpanned voice.
“I-it’s fine! Because I know and I’m doing something about it!” she replied, making him smile.
“Good.”
“Did I miss something?” asked Jimbei.”
“She’ll tell you later. I need to go now. Can I count on you to…”
“Yes, I don’t like it but I understand, so yes, you can count on me.”
“Thank you.”
“It’s fine, I owe you anyway.”
They both nodded to each other in understanding and Rick turned to the princess.

“Shishi, I’m leaving you in the hands of Jimbei. I have to go somewhere”
“Can’t I come with you?” she asked in a sad voice.
“Sadly, no. But friends are coming soon and they are really nice. I’m sure they would want to be friends with you.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“When will I see you again?”
“Soon I promise.” He floated to her eye level and patted her on the head, before going away.


*Flashback end*

“After that… Well, the big fight with Hody Jones happened. Since you had everything in hand, there was no need for me to take part. That is until…”
“Until Noah.” interrupted Jimbei.
“Noah?” said Rick faking not knowing.
“The big ship you tried to stop.”
“Ha, yes, until Noah. Anyway, that’s it.”

The entire crew looked at him in silence. Of course, the part about his thoughts and the system were omitted but the rest was still a lot to take in for them.

“And you, trying to sneak was… What? What did you expect? That we’d thought it was all a dream? That Chopper didn’t spend hours operating on you assisted by Robin just to save your life?” said an irritated Nami.
“I… Panicked.” said Rick in shame.
“YOU panicked?! Of all people YOU panicked?!” she started yelling.

“Okay, I’m in trouble now.”

“Is it that surprising?” he asked tentatively.
“Surprising, no. A big fat lie YES!”
“Nami has a point.” said Zoro, entering the conversation.
“You never panic. No matter what’s happening, no matter how dire the situation gets. You. Do. Not. Panic.” the swordsman added.
“You have one last chance.” warned the redhead, with some agreeing nods from some of her crewmates.

Rick took a deep breath. That was the performance of his life he had to make right now, he couldn’t fail.

“I was ashamed.”
“Ashamed? Only Luffy beat you in shamelessness.” said Usopp.
“Ashamed of what?” asked Brook
“Of not finding a way to not be a burden to you.”
“What do you mean?” This time it was Luffy who spoke.
“Because of what I am, I can’t use haki.”
“Okay, I’m done.” said Sanji as he began to make his way out of the room, He was stopped by Rick sprouting hands blocking the door. Being blocked, Sanji turned around.
“Every human can use haki, you told us yourself back on Skypiea.”
“But I’m not exactly human.”
“““....”””
“Come again?” said Franky.

Looking around Rick saw confusion on his crewmates face.

“Didn’t Luffy tell you?”

Everyone turned towards Luffy who clearly didn’t know what Rick was talking about.

“I should have known it was too complex for him.” he said with a long sigh.
“Listen up and keep quiet because it’s long and difficult to understand. When Kuma sent us away, I landed on …"

~~~~~

“That’s…” began Usopp.
“So hard to believe.” finished Franky.
“And yet it’s the truth.”
“So because your soul is.. Not in sync with your body correctly, you can’t use haki at all…” stated Chopper.
“Chopper, do you think it’s possible or he’s still bullshitting us.” asked Sanji.
“Honestly I don’t know. Souls? It’s so unscientific.”
“It’s true though. Aren’t I the living proof? Or is it dead proof? Yohohoho” said Brook.
“Okay, fine, let’s say you’re telling the truth…” began Nami
“I am, I swear!”
“Fine. I still don’t understand why you’re ashamed of being a burden? You never were one.”
“That’s not it.” said a voice coming from under Luffy’s hat.
“Whimposhi?” said Luffy.

She appeared from under his hat and jumped in the air, taking her 2.5m size.

“You’re ashamed that you can’t do anything about it.” she said looking at her friend.
“Yes.” he said with a sad smile.
“I still don’t understand.” said Nami.
“Nami, I’m a heavy hitter. I hit hard and take as much as I give, but in the New World, without haki, I can’t compete. I’m useless, and I don’t see any way for me to not be.”
“You’re plenty useful with your gravity, and your limbs popping around.” said Sanji.
“And you’re pretty cunning.” added Usopp.
“You’re an idiot.”

It was Robin who spoke. It was the first time she did since Rick began telling his story.

“Do you really think we don’t need you because you can’t fight anymore?”
“I…”
“It doesn’t matter if you can fight or not. What matters is that you are you.”
“Yeah! As long as you're with us that’s all that matters.” said Luffy smiling.
“You always took everything on your shoulders.” stated Chopper.
“Let us do the same for you for once!” added Usopp.

For the first time since more than two decades, Rick had tears in his eyes. He wasn’t faking it, it was genuine. He really felt cared for. Not as a friend, or badly like he felt during his time in the marines but truly cared for and loved.

“Usopp! You made him cry!”
“It’s not my fault!”
“Well if you had said to me what you just said I would be crying too out of fright.” said Nami.
“Oiiii! Nami!”

And the banter began. Something was said and someone reacted. Sanji and Zoro began fighting and, well… the usual happened.
Looking at his crewmates, at his friends, Rick knew the answer he has been asking himself for the past ten years.

Leaving the navy was the right decision.


~~~~~

The crew was back together again. Fully, and for good this time. Chopper asked many questions about Rick’s biological situation, fascinated by how advanced it was. He couldn’t help but respect the Genius of Dr. Vegapunk.

The plan was simple: when they’d reach the New World, Rick would leave for the Dr.’s island for a cure for his condition. He had talked about it during the revelation of who he was. And Luffy agreed for him to go. After all, if there was a chance for Rick to live he had to take it. Even if he couldn’t use haki, as long as he lived everything was fine.

The truth was he intended to use the time away to learn haki from Rayleigh since his longevity and haki problems were no more thanks to the Perfect Body V1 he had bought.

As everyone was partying in the dining hall, celebrating the crew reunion, Rick noticed Robin missing. He looked around for her and found her outside on a small balcony looking towards the island. He got closer and stopped right behind her.

“I’m sorry.” was all he said.
“I’m sorry I failed you. I… I just didn’t want to hurt you more than I already have and…”

He couldn’t finish his apology as Robin turned around and said two words he didn’t expect to hear from her. All the while looking at him dead in the eye.

“Marry me.” she said.

He was stunned and his mouth hung open. She got closer and took his hands in hers still looking him in the eyes and spoke again.

“I… I need you more than anything in my life. I want you more than anything in my life. I’ll miss you more than anything in my life and I love you more than anything in my life. So please… Marry me.”
“I… always wanted to ask you the same question. Ever since we got back from Skypiea.”
“Then ask.”

Rick put a hand in his pocket and pulled out what he had taken from the treasure room. He knelt in front of her and heard her holding her breath. He looked up into her eyes and raised his hands with a ring in them.

“Nico Robin, will you marry me?”

She extended her left hand and separated her fingers.

“Yes.” she said, tears running down her cheeks and smiling.

Rick put the ring on her ring finger. It was a bit too big, but none of them cared.

Suddenly they heard glass breaking and they turned their head to look inside. The entire crew stood in line and were looking at them. Jimbei and Shirahoshi were there too.
There were three groups.

The first one had the ones shocked and not in the know of their relationship. That is Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, Chopper and Jimbei.

The second group were the ones heartbroken and not in the know too. It includes Shirahoshi and Sanji. Both were on the ground crying silently but profusely.

The last group was the ones in the know and happy for their friends, that is Nami, Franky and Brook. They all had a big grin on their faces.

“Ro…”
“Yes?”
“I think we got caught.”

Robin rolled her eyes and picked her fiance from the ground before taking his face in both her hands and gave him a smoldering kiss.

Hrist_Waltz

I had so much fun writting this chapter. I didn't even realisez it was so long.

When I did I decided to back track a bit and put a stop at where the chapters is stopping now.
the wedding was supposed to be included. But I was already around 7k6 words.. So I didn't.

You'lle get the wedding in the next chapter. And who knows, maybe it will be R-18  *wink* *wink*