Their first real test as a crew came sooner than expected. While searching for a navigator in Orange Town, they encountered Buggy the Clown and his circus of destruction.
Kai's analytical mind immediately began cataloging the tactical situation as they approached the seemingly deserted town. "Population displacement indicates recent violent conflict," he murmured, noting the scattered belongings and hastily abandoned storefronts. "Architectural damage suggests explosives—specifically, spherical blast patterns consistent with cannonball impacts." "Is that smoke?" Luffy asked, pointing toward the town center.
"Combustion byproducts from multiple ignition sources," Kai confirmed. "Someone's been setting fires."
Zoro shot him an amused look. "Do you always talk like a textbook?"
"Knowledge is precision," Kai replied. "Imprecise language leads to imprecise thinking."
They soon discovered the source of the destruction: Buggy the Clown, a Devil Fruit user whose ChopChop abilities allowed him to separate his body parts at will. Kai's mind immediately began analyzing the tactical implications.
"Fascinating," he muttered as Buggy demonstrated his powers by detaching his hand to grab a fleeing townsperson. "Complete cellular separation without loss of nervous system connectivity. The bioelectric field maintaining control over detached limbs suggests a quantum entanglement effect at the molecular level."
"Less analyzing, more helping!" Luffy called out as he engaged Buggy's crew.
It was during this fight that Kai first revealed the true extent of his capabilities. When several pirates tried to flank Luffy, Kai moved with sudden, devastating efficiency. His movements were economical, precise— not the wild swings of a desperate amateur, but the calculated strikes of someone who understood human anatomy and leverage points with scientific precision.
The first pirate went down to a perfectly placed nerve strike that paralyzed his sword arm. The second found himself airborne after Kai used his own momentum against him with a textbook physics demonstration of rotational force. The third wisely decided to find somewhere else to be.
"Damn, four-eyes!" one of Buggy's crew members shouted. "When did you learn to fight like that?"
"I didn't learn to fight," Kai replied, adjusting his glasses calmly. "I learned anatomy, physics, and applied kinetics. Fighting is just the practical application."
Zoro, busy cutting through his own opponents, called out: "Not bad for a bookworm!"
But it was what happened next that truly established Kai's role in the crew. As the battle raged, he noticed something the others missed—a young orange-haired woman moving stealthily through the chaos, clearly with her own agenda.
"Luffy," he called out during a brief lull, "we're being observed. Orange hair, approximately seventeen years old, moving with professional stealth training. Not local—her equipment and clothing suggest she's from outside this region."
"Is she dangerous?" Luffy asked, dodging another of Buggy's detached hands.
Kai watched the girl for another moment, his enhanced perception picking up details others would miss. "Potentially. But her target appears to be Buggy's treasure rather than us. Probability suggests she's a thief rather than an assassin."
"Cool! Maybe she wants to join our crew too!"
The girl—who they would soon learn was named Nami—initially seemed more interested in robbing them than joining them. But Kai recognized something in her eyes that reminded him of his own situation aboard Alvida's ship: the desperate calculation of someone trapped by circumstances beyond their control.
"You're not just a common thief," he observed when they finally cornered her. "Your techniques suggest formal training, and your equipment is too high-quality for small-time crime. What are you really after?"
Nami's expression flickered with surprise before settling back into defensive hostility. "That's none of your business, glasses."
"Actually, it is," Kai replied calmly. "We're about to trust you with our lives in this fight. A crew member's motivations are always relevant tactical information."
"I'm not your crew member!"
"Not yet," Luffy said cheerfully. "But you will be! I can tell!"
The confidence in Luffy's voice seemed to shake something loose in Nami's carefully constructed walls.
Kai filed away her reaction for later analysis—there was definitely more to her story.
Their battle with Buggy's crew culminated in a confrontation that showcased each crew member's unique strengths. Luffy's rubber body proved immune to Buggy's blade attacks, Zoro's swordsmanship cut through the clown's separated body parts with surgical precision, and Kai...
Kai revealed why Alvida's crew had always feared his "strange mumbling."
"Buggy!" he called out during the height of the battle. "Your Chop-Chop fruit allows molecular separation, but it maintains quantum field coherence across distances. That means there's a maximum range limitation based on your personal bioelectric field strength!"
"What the hell are you talking about, brat?"
"I'm talking about this!" Kai pulled out a device he'd been secretly constructing during their voyage—a modified compass that could detect electromagnetic field variations. "Your detached parts emit a measurable signature. I can track every piece of you!"
What followed was a demonstration of applied scientific knowledge that left everyone speechless. Using his understanding of Buggy's Devil Fruit limitations, Kai coordinated their attacks with devastating precision, calling out exactly where each body part would be before it arrived.
"Detached left hand, approaching from seven o'clock, elevation three meters. Compensating for wind resistance and rotational momentum, impact in 2.3 seconds." Zoro's sword was waiting exactly where Kai predicted.
"This is impossible!" Buggy raged. "How are you doing this?"
"Science," Kai replied simply. "Also, you've been unconsciously favoring your right side since that old injury to your lower back—probably from a fight three to four years ago based on your compensation patterns. It makes your attack vectors predictable."
By the time the dust settled, Buggy was defeated, his crew scattered, and Orange Town was free. But more importantly, Kai had established himself as something more than just the "smart one" of the crew.
"That was amazing!" Luffy said as they prepared to leave. "How did you know all that stuff?"
"I pay attention," Kai replied. "And I read. A lot."
Nami, who had indeed decided to "temporarily" join their crew, studied him with newfound respect.
"Where did you learn to fight like that? And how do you know so much about Devil Fruits?"
"Long story," Kai said, deflecting as he always did when the conversation turned to his past. "The important thing is that our captain now has a crew that can handle whatever the Grand Line throws at us."
"Speaking of which," Zoro interjected, "we're going to need a real ship soon. This thing won't last a day in Grand Line waters."
Kai nodded thoughtfully. "Agreed. We'll also need supplies, proper equipment, and..." He paused, considering their next moves. "Actually, we should probably rescue a chef next. Proper nutrition is critical for maintaining peak physical and mental performance during extended voyages."
"A chef?" Luffy's eyes lit up. "Yeah! I want someone who can cook meat!"
"I know a place," Nami said reluctantly. "There's a floating restaurant called the Baratie not far from here.
They say it has the best cooks in the East Blue."
"Perfect!" Luffy declared. "Let's go!"
As their small ship changed course toward the Baratie, Kai found himself smiling. For the first time in years, he was looking forward to the future. His captain had vision, his crewmates had strength, and he... he had knowledge that could help them achieve the impossible.
The Pirate King's crew was taking shape, and Kai intended to make sure they had every advantage science could provide.
join patreon for advance chapter
patreon.com/Vivek_p628