My Special Ability

"Kid, where did you learn about the Rumbar Pirates?" Crocus asked as he stood on Laboon's back.

Unable to see anyone, Rodney said to the Sea Cow MooMoo, "Wait here for me."

He leaped up onto Laboon's skin. With suction cups seemingly growing from the soles of his feet, he stepped onto the whale and ran straight up its body.

Laboon was an Island Whale, and just as its scientific name suggested, it was practically an island. As its body had grown larger and larger, Crocus, who had originally been able to treat it externally, had been forced to enter its body for treatment instead. He had also made his leisure area inside Laboon's stomach and built quite a few things there, none of which affected Laboon's daily life.

Pirates had some truly marvelous creatures...

When he reached Laboon's back, he found that it was far larger than the plaza.

He also encountered Crocus, the ship's doctor of the Pirate King's crew. Crocus was glaring at him with an unfriendly expression. A recliner sat beside him, complete with a parasol, making it look as though he was enjoying life.

"Are you the one who said you knew about the Rumbar Pirates?"

"Yes, I said that."

Crocus said, "Do you know that crew was active fifty years ago?"

"Of course I do. This Island Whale, Laboon, was brought here by them. Although they're all dead now... Waaah!" Laboon had excellent hearing and could even hear ultrasonic waves. How could he possibly fail to hear that?

His mood immediately soured, and his massive body began thrashing about.

"Wait, I haven't finished speaking yet."

Crocus said, "Kid? Are you here to make fun of me and Laboon?"

"Of course not. Fifty years ago, the Rumbar Pirates were wiped out by their enemies in the Thriller Bark sea area. Every one of them really did die, but one of them, Brook, came back to life after eating the Revive-Revive Fruit. He was the last member of the Rumbar Pirates, but he was trapped there and couldn't get out. I heard that his shadow was taken by Moria, one of the Shichibukai, which was why he couldn't leave." Rodney explained.

"Woo~"

Laboon's cry came from beneath his feet. It was no longer sorrowful; instead, it carried a hint of joy.

"You didn't lie to me?" Crocus asked.

Rodney shook his head. "No. Why would I lie to the ship's doctor of the Pirate King? Wouldn't that just be asking for trouble?"

Crocus stroked his beard and said, "I'm starting to wonder who your source is." The fact that he had been the Pirate King's ship doctor was not something ordinary people could know, so he was rather curious about Rodney's knowledge of the Rumbar Pirates' whereabouts.

Rodney said with a smile, "I ate a strange Devil Fruit. Sometimes, my eyes randomly show me certain events. I happened to see something about the Rumbar Pirates. That Brook was a man in a black suit, a top hat, an afro, and thick lips. He also seemed to be a lecher." As he spoke, he revealed his Sharingan to make his story more credible.

"Hmm, let me think. Brook... He did seem to look like that." This time, Crocus completely believed him. "Those eyes... They're quite strange. They possess a special power. You actually dared to enter the Grand Line alone?" He thought Rodney was overestimating himself. A pirate's journey had never been a journey for one person. Only by supporting one another with companions could one make it to the end.

"I also have a Sea Cow... Though I'll release him later. I'm only entering the Grand Line to train my strength. I'm not going there to die." Besides, if he wanted to run, ordinary people would never be able to catch him.

He could simply run to a crowded place, use the Transformation Technique, and blend in. No one would be able to find him.

"These eyes grant me more than just those abilities." Seeing how confident he was, Crocus shook his head, folded up the recliner, and said, "Young man, if what you said is true, then Laboon and I owe you a great debt."

"It was nothing. Just a small favor." Rodney shook his head. As though he had thought of something, he rubbed his hands together and said with an embarrassed smile, "Um, I don't have a Log Pose. Do you think..."

In the Grand Line, where magnetic fields were chaotic and the weather was unpredictable, one could only use a Log Pose to sense the magnetic fields between islands and determine one's direction. To travel from one island to the next, one had to wait for a period of time each time, allowing the Log Pose to store the new magnetic field and point toward the next island.

Crocus laughed heartily. "It's no big deal. Come with me. Laboon, wait here for now. You'll soon be able to meet the person you've always wanted to see."

"Woo~" Laboon stretched its body, then swept its tail through the water, raising a gigantic wave as it swam to the lighthouse.

After the two landed, Crocus also learned that Rodney was a pirate hunter. Since he had eliminated all the powerful pirates in the East Blue, he had tied up the Sea Cow MooMoo and entered the Grand Line.

What an inexperienced calf unafraid of tigers!

The young people of today were no less impressive than they had been back then.

"Wait here for me." Crocus entered the lighthouse to find Rodney a Log Pose.

Rodney, meanwhile, gazed at the deep, crisscrossing scars covering Laboon's body. Its skin was pitted and uneven, and some of the wounds were still fresh. They had probably been inflicted recently. All of them had been caused by Laboon ramming its body into the Red Line Continent over the years.

"Then... Summoning Technique!"

Poof!

A slug over twenty meters long appeared beside him. Big Slug Sister asked, "What are your orders, Lord Rodney?"

"Big Slug Sister, do you think you can heal that whale's injuries?"

Big Slug Sister directed her "gaze" toward Laboon. "This whale is huge." Compared to her true body in Shikkotsu Forest, however, it was still much smaller. After all, her true body, the Slug Sage, was the entirety of Shikkotsu Forest.

"Hmm, these injuries will heal quickly. I should be able to finish in about half an hour. Lord Rodney, would you like me to start now? However, please wash the seawater off its skin first. The salt in seawater will damage my mucus. It won't kill me, but it will be very uncomfortable."

In the end, Big Slug Sister was still a slug. Salt would dissolve her cellular tissue. Because she was a summoned beast, it would not kill her, but it would still be extremely uncomfortable for her.

"No problem. Laboon, could you come a little closer?"

Laboon obediently moved closer until it was almost pressed against the nearly vertical cliff.

"Here I go. Water Style: Water Turbulent Wave!"

Chakra formed a massive amount of fresh water that washed over Laboon's skin, removing some of the salt.

"All right, I'm going up." Big Slug Sister began moving toward Laboon's body. Her more-than-twenty-meter-long form looked like a toy sprawled across its back.

Green medical Chakra was injected into the surface of Laboon's skin, stimulating the healing of its wounds. There was nothing she could do about the old scars, since they had already healed, but the newer ones could still be treated.

Even without Chakra, Medical Ninjutsu could still act on flesh, using Chakra to help wounds heal.

Laboon felt extremely comfortable. Compared to Crocus giving it injections and administering medicine inside its body, this method of healing was much more enjoyable.

"What is that..." Crocus emerged holding the Log Pose. Seeing Big Slug Sister on top of Laboon's head, he asked curiously.

"Oh, Mr. Crocus. This is my partner, Big Slug Sister. She can use the energy in her body to accelerate healing. She's also one of my abilities."

"Was she created by your ability?"

"No, she was summoned. These are eyes capable of creating miracles." The sight of his red eyes left Crocus stunned for a moment. Then he smiled and said, "Indeed, just those two abilities alone are quite surprising. Young man, your ability is truly unexpected. Are you really all right with telling this old man about it?"

"It's fine. You won't reveal my ability."

"You're certainly trusting. Here, this is the Log Pose you wanted. Its magnetic charge is full, and it's pointing toward the next island. Now, which route are you planning to choose?" he asked.

This was the starting point of the Grand Line. From here, seven different magnetic paths extended outward, representing seven sea routes. Regardless of which route one took, they would eventually reach the destination, Laugh Tale.

However, once a route was chosen, it could not be changed. One could only keep moving forward. Turning back later to take another route would be pointless.

"The route to Alabasta. Which one is it?"

"That one." Crocus pointed in a direction.

"Got it. I'll take that one." As for why that route existed, the reason was simple: in the anime, Luffy had taken it. Rodney only knew what that route was like. The other six routes were completely unknown to him, so, being cautious by nature, he chose the one he was most familiar with.