"Sin! We are late!" Nami anxiously said when he and Bonney joined everyone on the Forecastle Deck after taking a shower.
The Blackstar smiled as he watched hundreds of ships in the distance climbing up Mount Hannabal, sailing on its reverse streams.
"Relax." He gently patted her orange head, making her pout.
"We are winning this, right?"
"Yes."
"The 300,000,000 Berries..."
"Will be equally divided amongst the crew. I will not take my share."
"You can give your share to me." She grinned, and he grinned back at her.
"Nope." He flatly refused and then signalled to Bepo.
Augur quickly opened the sails since the wind was in their favour, and Lily helped him out with it.
"Awesome!!!" Yamato had sparkles in her eyes as she saw the people of the Town cheering for the participants.
Vivi merrily laughed when their ship started climbing up the mountain, but as they got closer and closer to the peak, she started becoming a little worried.
"What's on the top of the mountain?" She asked, and all of them grinned at her.
"Nothing. We will be falling." Robin cryptically said, and Vivi laughed.
"I am not falling for that!" She said that but as soon as they reached the peak and she saw the scene in front of her, her heart skipped a beat.
There were screams of Pirates all around, and they really did end up free-falling.
She had never in her life screamed so loud, and she was not the only one who was panicking right now.
"The ship..."
Kuina had not even finished speaking when they crashed, but to her astonishment, they were back on the water and rushing down the river, into the sea.
"Is fine." Sin smiled at her and trapped Nami's head, whose eyes widened as she saw dozens of broken ships in their path out of the town.
"Bepo! Keep left!" She shouted as she flew up into the second Crow's Nest, and kept guiding the Mink, who solely worked as a Helmsman right now.
Lily, Yamato, Bart, and Augur controlled the sails under her instructions, and the Black Pearl expertly made its way out into the sea.
The other Pirate Vessels even engaged in warfare, trying to loot and take each other out, but no one dared to cause trouble to them.
Nami, out of caution, still took a detour, confident in Black Pearl's superior speed, and by noon they had entered the Sea of Cyclones.
She kept giving orders, and everyone followed her instructions as she helped them Navigate through one of the most treacherous parts of the Evil Sea in Paradise.
Hours later, when they finally made it out, she jumped on the Forecastle Deck and took a deep breath, staring at the blue sky in the distance.
"Good job." Sin gently patted her head, and she beamed a bright smile at him.
"My share will be doubled now."
"Nope."
"Don't be mean!"
"You are the one who is being mean." He tapped her head, making her wince. "You want to steal the share of your crewmates. That's something that only scums do."
She glared at him, but then lowered her head and pouted, not saying anything again.
Ain was quite impressed after seeing Nami perform her duties as a Navigator even better than the best of Navigators in the world, and once again, she was in awe of how talented everyone on this ship was.
Kuina was very skilled with the sword, immensely talented, and a very quick learner. She had already learned Geppo and even Rankyaku, which she could already incorporate with her Sword Art.
Bart was crazy strong, unusually big, and also very focused. He too had managed to learn Tekkai in the last week and was still working on learning Geppo and Soru.
Lily was... Lily. A Giantess. Immensely strong. And she possessed a very versatile Devil Fruit. She had easily managed to learn both Geppo and Soru and even right now, she was trying to get the gist of Tekkai.
Yamato was an Oni, possessing the Conqueror's Haki, and at the same time, she possessed a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit. Her learning speed had nearly given Ain a scare as she had not just learned but also mastered Geppo and Soru.
Nojiko too possessed a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, and only at 14, she could use both Armament and Observation Haki. She was still trying to learn Geppo, but it would not get long before she would get the hang of it.
Pascia, who was only 15, too possessed both Armament and Observation Haki, and she had the Paper-Paper Fruit, which Robin classified as a Special Paramecia. She was quite interesting, and she was the only one who had managed to learn Kami-e so far. Though Ain highly suspected that it was all thanks to her Devil Fruit.
Shachi and Penguin, the Twins, both Engineers, very smart, and very serious about growing stronger. They had put their Haki Training on hold as they were now her full-time apprentices, determined to master all of the Six Styles.
Van Augur. The finest Sniper she had seen in her life. He was... ridiculous with his aim, and also a very ardent and exceptional learner. He had already mastered Geppo, Soru, and Tekkai.
Bepo, the Polar Bear Mink. The boy was quite fun to be around, and he laughed a lot, but he also worked exceptionally hard. He possessed good Navigation Skills, both Armament and Observation Haki, and now also knew how to use Geppo.
Vigaro, The Wyvern. The young man was quiet, very quiet, and even more respectful. He was also a very talented fighter and an exceptional learner, having also mastered Tekkai and Geppo.
Gad, the tall Fishman. He had great mastery over Fishman Karate and now had also mastered Soru and Tekkai. He was still working on Geppo, but unlike Shachi and Penguin, he had not put his Haki Training on hold.
The Triplets, who were Half Fish-maids, possessed greater strength than humans, and even though they were most busy with taking care of the ship and the kitchen, they were decent fighters as well, and they trying their best to learn Tekkai right now.
Jewelry Bonney, the Glutton, and the Enigma. She and her talent were... frightening. Only a week, and she had already mastered Geppo, Soru, Tekkai, and even learned how to use Rankyaku. Things that would take other months if not years, only took her days to master...
The Devil's Sister, Black D. Robin. She was even scarier than Bonney. The Devil Fruit she possessed sent chills up her spine every time she thought about it, and she was one of the rare few people in the world who possessed the Conqueror's Haki.
There were also three more members who were not on the ship right now.
Ain had yet to meet Hachi, who was at Fishman Island, but having met Law and Hancock, she could confidently say that they were two do the most blessed and dangerous people in existence.
When she glanced toward the beautiful white Crowned Monkey, her head felt a little dizzy. Even the pet was very talented and was trying to learn Geppo, and since Yamato could talk to it, she was the one helping him learn it.
And finally, the Captain of the Blackstar Pirates. Her Captain.
She did not get to learn much about him in the last week, other than that he was revered, respected, and loved by both his crew and the people of Winterheim.
And Ain knew that he was immensely strong and even more dangerous.
She had sensed his Conqueror's Haki easily overpowering Akainu's Colour of the Supreme King, and the Red Admiral was considered the strongest of the three Admirals.
"Ain." She nearly jumped in a scare when he called out to her, and seeing his raised brow, she beamed a little nervous.
"Yes?"
"Come, I will teach you how to use Ryou."
It was only now she realised that Robin was standing behind her, and her heart palpitated in fear.
When did she sneak up behind her?
"Ryou?"
"Advanced Armament Haki. It's called Ryou in Elbaf and Wano." Robin smiled and then turned around to walk away.
Ain's eyes winded in surprise, and she quickly followed the Younger Black to the Quarter Deck.
"How long will it take?"
The Black giggled at her words.
"It all depends on how talented you are."
Those words really made her feel very nervous, but she determinedly nodded her head.
On her way, she passed by Kuina, who was sitting against the railing, hugging her sword, and seemingly meditating.
She was very curious about what the Swordsgirl was doing but did not disturb her.
The crew soon busied themselves with their duties, and some decided to take a break and get some rest.
Robin first sat Ain down and told her in depth about what Emission and Internal Destruction were, and then guided her through the process.
Bonney, who was free, decided to chip in and help her out.
As for Sin, he calmly stood on the Forecastle Deck, starting in the distance.
Only Yamato noticed that he had something important on his mind, and she just silently approached him and stood by his side, just in case he would like to share it with her.
"It's a beautiful day, isn't it?" She grinned, and Sin too grinned at her words.
"Aye, it's a beautiful day."
"So, what's occupying your thoughts on such a day?"
"A bunch of rogue Marines who have formed their own Pirate crew, led by a Vice Admiral named Gasparade, who has eaten Shio Shio no Mi, a Logia Devil Fruit."
"Just a Vice Admiral?" She was confused, and the next words made her heart go cold.
"He and his crew have wiped out three villages, kidnapped hundreds of children, and extracted organs from them and the adults as well."
"He has connections with the Underworld. We should look for some information in St. Poplar."
"Granny is in St. Poplar." He revealed and then frowned. "Partia is also a Black Market channel."
"So that's why you showed a sudden interest in Dead End Race," she nodded her head and smiled. "What are you going to do to him?"
He chuckled and a cold glint passed his eyes.
"I will extract his organs, of course."
Sin heard a certain Orangehead's heart skip a beat, who had been evasdropping on their conversation, and glanced her way.
He smiled when he saw her trying to pretend that she was not being mischievous, but her face was a little pale right now.
An hour later, everyone had their lunch, and as soon as they finished eating, Augur's voice came from the Crow's Nest.
"Land Ho!!!"