Chapter 16 – The Crew Grows, the Eyes Evolve, and Smoke Begins to Move
The sudden invitation left Nojiko blinking.
"Me?"
"If the sister she relied on her whole life joined the crew, Nami would be over the moon."
Aike shamelessly used the family card.
Nothing worked better than emotional blackmail.
It worked like a charm—Nojiko wavered.
She had never left the island, but the vast ocean had always called to her.
Add Nami into the equation, and the heart she'd kept locked for years began to stir.
Yet when her gaze swept across the tangerine grove Bell-mère had left behind, she forcibly crushed the longing.
"I'll pass. A quiet life here suits me better than adventures at sea."
A bald-faced lie.
Aike saw right through it.
No problem—he didn't need to convince her. Someone else could do that for him.
"You're worried about Bell-mère's tangerine trees, right?"
Nami stepped out from the shadows, clearly having overheard everything.
"You used to say that when I became a navigator, you'd be the helmswoman."
She looped her arm through Nojiko's, staring earnestly at the sister who raised her.
"Come with us. We already have a solution for the grove."
"Right, boss?"
Nami winked at Aike.
In her mind, he could do literally anything.
With his own crewmate asking, Aike naturally played along.
"I can transplant the entire grove into a private dimension. You can tend it anytime you want."
"You can do that?!"
Nojiko gaped.
Refusing now would just be rude.
"…Then please take care of me from now on, Captain."
…
Next morning.
Carina, Kaya, Izumi, and Hikari stepped outside—and stared at the completely bare yard.
Smooth dirt. Not a single tree.
Did they wake up in the wrong universe?
While they stood there dumbfounded, Nojiko emerged from the kitchen with breakfast.
She explained last night's events.
The other four weren't even surprised.
Especially Carina. The moment she saw Nojiko, she knew Aike wouldn't let that onee-san energy go to waste.
They weren't a crew so much as a harem-in-waiting. It was only a matter of time.
"Nami's already fallen. I'm probably next," Carina sighed, perfectly at peace with her fate.
As for the grove—easy guess.
Aike had fused Kakashi's traded Kamui eye into Hikari's Mangekyō.
Thanks to the contract, he now had Kamui too.
Last night, after Nojiko signed on, he moved the entire orchard into the Kamui dimension and spent 50,000+ transaction points terraforming it into a perfect miniature world—sun, soil, weather, the works.
Otherwise nothing would grow in that empty void.
To offset the cost, he made Nojiko sign a contract too.
"From today on, Nojiko is our helmswoman."
Aike came downstairs with a glowing, newly-mature Nami trailing behind him.
Carina instantly understood what had happened overnight.
She dragged Nami aside for girl talk.
Kaya, Izumi, and Hikari just thought Nami looked prettier.
Nojiko watched with a soft, slightly complicated smile.
Breakfast table.
"You're really giving all the treasure you hoarded for years to the village?"
Carina stared at Nami like she'd grown a second head.
This was the same girl who once haggled over single berries.
"I'm not that stingy," Nami huffed.
Then, softer: "The village suffered for so long. They need it to rebuild.
Besides, Aike promised all future treasure belongs to me. Out with the old, in with the new."
Four pairs of eyes swiveled to Aike.
He just nodded.
After last night, a few hundred million berries was pocket change.
Gold and jewels were the cheapest commodities he traded anyway.
After breakfast, Nami and Nojiko headed to the village square to distribute the money.
Aike took Kaya, Izumi, and Hikari to the beach.
Tom stayed home to guard the house (and probably nap).
On the sand, Aike pulled out two glowing orbs.
"That's… Indra and Ashura's chakra?"
Izumi recognized them instantly.
Hikari tilted her head, feeling every cell in her body scream for the power.
"Meant to give these to you ages ago, then forgot.
Upgraded the Kamui space last night and remembered.
We're staying a few days anyway—perfect time to power you two up."
He split each orb in half, then padded them with harvested Mangekyō essence and lifespan energy.
Quality slightly reduced, quantity massively increased.
Then he injected the packages into Izumi and Hikari.
Both girls immediately fell into a deep, meditative slumber.
"They'll be okay, right?" Kaya asked worriedly.
"Better than okay. Best shape of their lives."
Aike ruffled her hair, grinning.
He could feel the explosive power flooding his own body through the contract.
Yin and Yang in harmony reveal all creation.
In canon, Madara needed Hashirama's flesh to awaken the Rinnegan.
Aike just straight-up fused the pure essences of Indra and Ashura.
Even diluted and split, it was overkill.
"They should both awaken Rinnegan when they wake up."
Aike stroked his chin, already looking forward to the reveal.
As for himself?
The complete, enhanced versions flowed through him.
Six Paths techniques, Rinne Tensei—everything unlocked.
And deep in his eyes, a brand-new, personal dojutsu was quietly gestating.
…
Meanwhile, at Branch 16.
An entire warship and its corrupt colonel had vanished overnight.
The remaining Marines finally reported it to headquarters in Loguetown.
"Hmph!"
"Lost contact all night and only reports it now?"
"Branch 16 needs a serious disciplinary review."
Smoker slammed the desk, cigar fuming harder than he was.
He tur
ned to the messenger.
"Alert every branch in the area. Send search parties with Branch 16.
If they encounter anything beyond their level, retreat immediately and report to me."
"Yes, Colonel!"
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