Chapter 19: New Crew Acquired!

Much to Luffy's surprise, breakfast with Nojiko the next morning wasn't awkward. The previous night had been amazing in a lot of ways, educational in many others…but it had also brought with in an understanding of what Nojiko had meant. Simply put, while it had been fun, they weren't actually very compatible. Both of them had instinctively wanted to lead, and it had only worked out to a good time for both of them because of the specific roles they'd been playing. Nojiko that of the older woman who was teaching as much as she was seducing, Luffy that of an inexperienced lover that was eager to learn. She had given way in ways he could feel with his Haki and empathy that she wouldn't have normally. While he, in turn, had accepted guidance he knew he likely wouldn't have if he'd had any practical experience at all to draw on.

Given their comfortable, half-naked banter over the breakfast table, it was clear that neither of them regretted the one-night stand. But neither did either of them nurse any thought that it had been more than it was. Said banter and the ease with which they had slipped into it also leveled out his surprise when she finally broached a more serious topic than the idle chatter and stories they'd be exchanging.

"If Nami and I go with you, what are your plans?"

The question had been asked with a serious tone, and so Luffy leaned back to think through his reply, working out the best answer he could give. Much of it echoed words he'd already said to Shanks, the better part of a decade ago now.

"I want to see all that this world has to offer. To explore, to see the very ends of the earth and the many mysteries in it. To, most of all, be free. I don't really care about wealth, fame, or power. Not beyond what is needed to chase that dream." Luffy let that settle for a moment, then sighed and added one more thing, a warning of sorts. "But I will not ignore evil in front of me. Just as I desire freedom, I can't stand to see it taken away from innocents. I am no revolutionary, and no king either. But I can't and won't ignore an honest cry for help. That, in the end, will get me and those around me in trouble."

Nojiko nodded slowly, processing that. For a long minute she was silent, seeming to weigh what he'd said against some other thought. Then, a much sharper nod indicated she'd made her choice.

"Then I'm going with you. A part of me hates to leave. But the people here don't need me anymore. I'm no revolutionary either, but if you're going to end up helping people like you did here, anywhere you find that sort of thing? Then I want to come along. I wished for a long, long time that someone would help us, desperately clinging to that hope even when no one came. And in the end? Someone did. Maybe I can be that someone to someone else, too. Someday."

Luffy grinned hugely.

"Yes! Now, we just need to figure out where you'll fit into the crew best! Hmmm, and we need to finish work on our ship. The small one we're using now is getting far too cramped to hold us all…"

Nojiko raised an eyebrow at that.

"You already have a bigger ship in the works?"

"Of course! You're going to love it!"

And then Luffy was off, talking about one of his favorite subjects to a new victim, ignoring the bemused expression on his companion's face…

... ...

Nami's surprise when she discovered her sister's intentions had been far greater than Luffy's own. The rest of the town hadn't been quite as shocked, having been able to witness Nojiko chaffing under her inability to act at a much closer distance than the redhead. Still, it hadn't taken long for Nami to warm to the idea, particularly when Nojiko revealed that she'd already talked to a few of the villagers, who were more than willing to look after the mikan trees and small house that rightfully belong to the two sisters. Given that both of them had actively participated in taking down the Arlong Pirates…well, it wasn't a shock that the locals were willing to do that much. Particularly not when Nami and Nojiko had made it clear that they wanted nothing to do with Arlong's treasure. Not even the large quantity of it that Nami herself had gathered.

There was, in fact, only one thing Nami had wanted to collect from the ruins of Arlong Park. She'd seesawed a bit on whether she wanted them or not, but she had ultimately chosen to take all the maps she'd made of the East Blue so far. As much as it pained her to remember being forced to work on them, the truth was that she'd mapped somewhere close to sixty percent of the entire East Blue. In her own words, once she'd sorted through them and burned nearly everything else from 'her' room, 'there was no point in mapping it all again, when she'd paid such a high price to do it the first time.' It had made sense to Luffy, even if it didn't match what Alex had remembered of the show. Perhaps this Nami simply hadn't quite collapsed as far into hatred of everything Arlong related as that one. Or perhaps it was simply being able to make the choice outside of a heated moment that saw the maps preserved.

Either way, those maps and a modest supply of sentimental objects, clothes, and so on, were all that the two girls took as they left the island. They did want to take a mikan tree or two, which Luffy wasn't at all against. If they could keep them alive on the ocean, they would be a boon to any ship for the fresh vitamin C they could provide. Given how packed-in they were becoming aboard his first catamaran, however, he'd convinced them to wait to pick up those trees until the new ship was ready. He'd even offered to let them stay on their home island until said ship was ready, simply giving them training exercises to do like he did with Usopp, but they'd both shot him down quickly. Nami wanted to get to know the new ship as it was being tested, and Nojiko admitted she might get too pulled into village life to leave if she didn't set out now.

It was thus that, with their entire home village and a few stragglers from the other communities there to send them off, the crew pushed off to sea and headed back toward Syrup Village. There they would drop Usopp off, spend a week or so training with him and Kaya, then head back to Dawn to finish the last sprint of working on their new vessel. As the shore fell away, Luffy turned to his crew-so-far and brought up a point he'd avoided up until now.

"Alright, everyone! Gather around! We've got crew matters to discuss!"

There wasn't a whole lot of gathering to do. The catamaran was large enough that they weren't uncomfortably packed it. But the deck space was getting more than a little crowded. Still, his comment did get them all focused on him, instead of the little side conversations or bits of training they'd been doing before.

"Now that there are six of us, we really need to start actually setting up a proper crew structure! As well as a few other things, like Crew Split and so on. Essentially, we need to sort out who is in charge of what and set expectations, to keep chaos and conflict down in the long run."

That won him nods from most, and no protests from anyone. Thank God this Usopp was more mature than the caricature of him from the show. Luffy might just have strangled him if he'd begun shouting about being captain. He wasn't putting up with that shit, and thankfully wouldn't be expected to. Much to Luffy's surprise when he'd started asking about it years ago, Pirates in this world weren't at all the same as the pirates of earth. Not when it came to crew structure, at least. He supposed it made a sort of sense. Pirates here were capable of making fleets and becoming serious world powers. So the fact that the majority of the good crews operated off a structure closer to that of merchant sailors or naval units, rather than the chaotic democracies that most pirate crews on earth had been, had a sort of logic to it. Bounty hunter crews were far more nebulous, in part because it was rare for them to actually have full crews. But Luffy was going to treat them like a proper crew from the start, to ease any conflict. He started with the easiest, most obvious, by pointing at Nami.

"I don't think anyone here is going to protest my immediate appointment of Nami as our Sailing Master/Navigator, yes?"

His dry observation won a round of chuckles from everyone else, even as Nami beamed. Everyone quickly agreed…which left him moving on to a slightly touchier subject.

"The most important position to fill is one I've thought a lot about. Kuina, I'd like you to be the ship's First Mate."

Kuina straightened, looking at him in surprise. Eyeing Zoro cautiously, she spoke.

"I'm…not against it. But are you sure?"

Luffy nodded firmly.

"It was always going to be between you and Zoro. But the truth is that part of a First Mate's job is putting in the time and effort to deal with any crew issues I either can't or am not around for. Frankly put, you're more of a people person than Zoro is. As well as, sorry Zoro but this is true, better educated."

Zoro actually shrugged at that.

"No offense taken, Captain. You're right, she's better with people than I am. And more willing to put in the time on things that aren't training."

With one more searching look at Zoro and no protest coming from the sisters or Usopp, Kuina nodded.

"Then I accept the position."

"Excellent! Onto another easy one then. Usopp, I want you in the position of Master Gunner! I have some something special planned for our armament. We're only going to have a small number of guns, but they'll have much greater range and far higher striking power than normal. It's going to be a serious task to get you trained on them and able to direct fire from both main guns. Once you're trained, you'll be in charge of everything to do with them. Including of anyone else in the crew who mans them during combat."

Usopp perked up, clearly intrigued by the idea of special guns. Given the sort of things Luffy had already introduced him to in that area, he was clearly eager to see what a Luffy-designed ship's canon would be like.

"Wellll…I had been thinking I was a shoe in for First Mate! But…the guns do sound like more fun. You can count on me, Captain! I'll be the Master Gunner!"

Luffy grinned. He'd picked the more grandiose title on purpose, and it seemed to help. He hadn't been lying about the guns, either. They were going to be far more powerful, but also far more complex, than this world was used to. They would demand someone with Usopp's mind for mechanisms to keep them well maintained…and someone with his natural eye to fire, given the ranges they were theoretically capable of. Also math. Usopp was going to get a rude awakening that math was sometimes needed for firing big guns. Poor Usopp.

"Right. That leaves Nojiko and Zoro to sort out. I know Zoro fairly well, and he's actually been learning a lot about the metals I've used in our new ship's construction, as I've been experimenting with many of the same metals for his swords. I'm thinking you'll be a good fit for a bosun position. In our smallish crew, that will really mean two things. One, keeping everyone on task and on schedule for training and such. And two, keeping an eye on the ship. Specifically looking for damages, metal fatigue, and other such things that I'll need to deal with."

Zoro considered for a moment, then nodded.

"That suits me, Captain. I don't mind helping organize training, and keeping an eye on the ship is a way I can contribute to our other needs."

Luffy nodded, happy Zoro hadn't fought him. The slightly-older man had been the most difficult to place in a position. He was an incredible combatant, but not overly much of a sailor. His experience with the metals in question would be a great help though, as Luffy was going to have entirely too much else on his plate to keep up regular hull inspections. Turning to the last current member of the crew, he addressed her.

"Nojiko, I don't know what you can do just yet. However, there are a couple of critical roles left to fill, if you feel that you'd be a good fit for any of them. I have someone in mind for a cook, and another for a doctor. But no one for the position of Quartermaster or Purser. Are either of those things you're interested in?"

The bluette cocked her head, then slowly nodded.

"I was actually handling a lot of organizational stuff for Cocoyasi. I don't think I'd be the right person to handle a Purser position, but I think I could do a Quartermaster's job? At least, once I get some more experience with the needs of a ship at sea…"

Luffy nodded.

"That's fine. You'll be learning how to sail anyway, and the new ship won't be ready for several months. Even after that, we'll be sticking around the East Blue for a bit to get used to her, as well as hopefully pick up one or two more crew. So you'll have plenty of time to get a handle on what we need, while still being in relatively forgiving seas if anything goes wrong."

Nojiko looked more certain at that, nodding firmly and stating that she'd give the job a go, at least. Happy with what he'd accomplished, Luffy brought up several easier discussions about loot split, with only Nami trying to wheel and deal and easily shut down by her sister. When they'd ironed out a satisfying amount of basic details, he let them all go back to training or work. No point in harping on the boring stuff with this particular crew. With that done, he did one more thing he'd been putting off. He'd only taken a cursory look at the sisters' statuses up until now…

... ... ... ...

Status

... ... ... ...

Name: Nami

Title: Mistress of the Winds

Age: 17

Level: 26

Spirit Fruit: N/A

Stats:

Strength: 34

Dexterity: 67

Endurance: 33

Intelligence: 72

Wisdom: 42

Charisma: 74

Luck: 37

Description: Orphaned in a pirate attack and raised by her adoptive mother Bell-mère, Nami is a former (unwilling) member of the Arlong Pirates, as well as a world class navigation talent.

Relationship to Gamer: Crush, Crewmate. Utterly loyal to her new Captain after he helped her save her village, Nami has also developed a nascent crush on the gamer, and is very mildly jealous of the 'reward' she knows Nojiko gave their new Captain. She wishes she'd had the courage to do the same, but knows it would have been a bad idea as she doesn't want just a fling.

Skills:

Navigation: 92

Ship Handling: 84

Staff Fighting: 54

... ... ... ...

Luffy was barely able to stop himself from reacting after he read Nami's Relationship to Gamer entry. His mind was spinning as he forced himself to skim her skills, his shock at seeing just how talented she was at Navigation and Ship Handling actually helping snap him out of the shock a bit. Nami…had a crush on him? And she'd known what Nojiko had planned last night?! Luffy's brain was thoroughly derailed for long minutes, staring at nothing as he tried to process everything there. Nami was one hundred percent attractive, and he'd found bantering with her fun. But he'd been so focused on getting her on his crew and solving her problem that he'd not really…given any thought to those details?

He snuck a glance at her now, blushing a bit as he let himself take in the way her tight shirt and shorts hugged her figure. Okay. So. This was a thing. A thing he was absolutely going to have to think about. But now, with everyone in such close quarters, probably wasn't the best time. With a monumental effort, he managed to get his train of thought back on the tracks, pushing the revelation to the back of his mind as he looked switch to Nojiko's stat sheet and gave it a look.

... ... ... ...

Status

... ... ... ...

Name: Nojiko

Title: Big Sister

Age: 20

Level: 27

Spirit Fruit: N/A

Stats:

Strength: 53

Dexterity: 65

Endurance: 52

Intelligence: 69

Wisdom: 59

Charisma: 62

Luck: 45

Description: Orphaned in a pirate attack and raised by her adoptive mother Bell-mère, Nojiko has done her best to look after her younger sister, despite Nami being dealt a terrible hand by fate. Courageous and determined, she has trained herself rigorously with the thought that, eventually, she was going to need that strength.

Relationship to Gamer: Crewmate, Harem Cheerleader. Loyal to her new Captain after he helped her save her village, Nojiko had also noticed the way her sister looks at him. She's determined to make both of them happy, and has some very odd ideas of how to do that. It's possible she's spent too much time reading the hidden collection of naughty novels Bell-mère had written and hidden away.

Skills:

Navigation: 35

Ship Handling: 15

CQC Rifle Style: 63

Marksmanship: 49

... ... ... ...

Luffy stared. Apparently, he did so for long enough for Nami to notice and call out a question, which snapped him out of it. He hastily called out a response, making something up about practicing his Observation Haki, and choosing to ignore the quirked eyebrow Kuina sent in his direction. She, at least, likely would have felt him doing so. Thankfully, she didn't call him on it, and he shifted to doing some actual scanning with his Haki, even as he tried to process the second set of surprises that had come out of the sisters' status windows.

Unable to help his curiosity, he very carefully opened Nojiko's 'additional details' page. The page that listed things like sexual preferences, kinks, and fantasies. He quickly shut it again, after only a quick skim, and did his absolute best not to blush noticeably. This girl hadn't even had access to the internet! Just how active had Bell-mère's imagination been?! He did sort of recall, in a vague way at this point, that the version Alex had seen in the show had been a flirt. Not to mention described as some sort of hellion in her youth. But, still…

Luffy eventually managed to shake off his surprise. He wasn't adverse to the idea of having a wing woman trying to hook him up with girls, he supposed. So long as Nojiko didn't go over the top with it or something. But it certainly hadn't been an expected revelation. Much like the surprise that Nami had a crush on him, though that one he could at least sort of see the chain of events that had caused it? Maybe? This was not an area where he had a lot of expertise.

Sighing, he did his dead level best to wrestle his thoughts back to their original tracks. He'd taken a glimpse at the status sheets of the sisters intending to get a feel for where they were at. Which, despite the surprises that had come along, he'd managed to do. Both of them had extremely respectable levels for people in the East Blue. Usopp had been training under Zoro and Luffy on and off for better than half a year at this point, yet he was lagging behind even Nami by two levels. To be fair, he was a year younger than her and had a lot less practical combat experience. But it was still a strong indication of just how far Nami's adventures and Nojiko's self-training had pushed them. He was strongly suspicious that Nojiko, in particular, might be just as much of a monster as he, Kuina, and Zoro. How else could you explain reaching that high a level, with such good combat stats and skills, entirely by self-training?

One way or another, there was a clear gap between the sisters and Usopp, versus himself, Kuina and Zoro. That was honestly fine, even outright expected. He'd known from the start that Nami and Usopp's value was really in their insane talents. Usopp's marksmanship was damn near as high as Nami's navigation, and Nami's navigation skill likely made her the single best Navigator in the entire East Blue already. A year or two on the Grand Line would likely make her one of the top five navigators in the world, full stop. Even with no combat ability at all, that would make her a priceless treasure. The fact that she actually was a decent level and had existing combat abilities only made it better.

As for Nojiko? She was one hell of an unexpected bonus. There was still the better part of seven months before the original Luffy had even left on his journey, which was roughly when he'd planned to set out in a serious way himself. With that amount of time to work with, given how much of a monster he suspected Nojiko actually was...he'd be surprised if they couldn't push her all the way to level 30, giving them another truly serious fighter. After all, there were also those amazing bonuses he'd picked up with the express purpose of dragging crew members up to his power levels. It was time to put them to serious use. Which meant it was also going to be time to have a serious talk with Kaya and Usopp soon.

Things were coming together nicely, at least for a starting point. But they had a long way to go if they were going to survive once the heat focused on them. And he had absolutely no belief they'd avoid that. He is a D, after all. Even if he had almost no idea at all what that means…

... ... ...

A/N: Relationships! As determined by poll previously, this story will be a multi-ship. But as mentioned before Nojiko won't be among them. Instead, one of my patrons unintentionally gave me the idea to use her as a meddling big sister type trying to set Luffy up with others. Hence the little details about Belle-mere's unknown hobby ;-). I think, in the long run, she'll be a useful tool for me to help in making the multi-ship pairing feel a lot more plausible/natural.