The Fight for the Treasure 10 

Koby POV - Blue Star, Grand Line, Nanatsu Islands(Na) - 20 GAP 

We reach the shores of the mysterious island that descended from the sky a few minutes after it gently landed on the sea, and just like I have seen from the distance, most of the island is covered by a thick green forest with no sign of civilization anywhere.

As I'm studying my surroundings I hear Alvida-san's voice as she comments, "It seems that we aren't alone on this island..." I turn around and see that she is looking at a small rock connected to the island with some kind of small temple built on top of it. 

But more importantly, I focus on the pirate ship docked nearby whose Jolly Roger is quite familiar, which consists of the classic skull with two crossed bones behind it, and in the background an ornate gold disk, the same one we have seen tattooed on the arms of the three Fish-women, Saphir, Rubis, and Emeraude, the Précieuses of the Simon Pirates.

Seeing that, I comment, "Indeed, and from the spectacular scene that this island's appearance caused, it is very likely that we will encounter all the remaining forces of the Simon Pirates, including that guy Gad, and the three Fish-women, Saphir, Rubis, and Emeraude, and let's not forget that it is very likely that Simon himself is present. He isn't someone that we can currently face."

Hearing that, Alvida snorts and says, "Heh, with the power of the Sube Sube no Mi (Smooth Smooth Fruit), this Simon guy won't be able to harm me-" but I quickly correct her, "Do not underestimate them, Alvida-san! Gad, Saphir, Rubis, and Emeraude already showed you that you aren't invincible, not only you can be harmed by their water attacks, but with enough wit and preparation you also can be captured, which is equally bad, as after that, they can simply throw you in the sea a leave you drowning, and do not forget about Simon who is even more dangerous..."

While saying that, I notice the clear signs of annoyance and anger showing on her face, so to avoid further conflict and make her listen, I decide to use my trump card, "I don't say this to belittle you but only to show my concern from my teacher's future wife. You said it yourself, now that you not only are the most beautiful of all the seas, but also the most generous, loyal, and reliable, there is nothing stopping the love between you from finally blossoming! After all, Jayr-san did say that the only thing that stopped him from chasing after you was your previous evil attitude..."

At the same time, I think, 'Well, I don't exactly like this, I feel really bad about it, it is like I'm throwing Jayr-san under the bus leaving to him deal with this mess while I manipulate Alvida-san's genuine feelings for him...' but then I remember everything I went through while training with him and realize, 'Oh well, I'm sure everything will be fine anyway, it isn't like I propusely did this as some twisted form of revenge... well, maybe a little... but it isn't like anything bad could happen even if Alvida-san is truly able to join Jayr-san's family, everyone will be happy.... right?'

While I have the uneasy feeling that I have made some kind of grave mistake, I watch as Alvida-san starts to heavily blush as she holds her face with her hand, showing the perfect image of a young woman in love as she says, "Ara ara... You are right, Koby! I can't be careless now that I'm so close to not only being the most beautiful, generous, loyal, and reliable of the seas, but also the happiest! Thanks for opening my eyes!" 

Then her expression suddenly turns once again serious as she asks, "But how can you be so sure that this Simon is even more dangerous than those Fish-men? Could it be that he also is a Fish-men and can also attack with water like them?"

Hearing her question, I shake my head and explain, "No the reason why Simon can be as dangerous to you as them is for another reason. From what I know, Simon is like you, a Devil Fruit User, but different from you, he very likely ate a Logia Type Devil Fruit... one that allows him to create, control, and transform into pieces of paper at will. This not only makes him basically invincible against physical attacks just like you are, but it is also possible that he is able to capture you using them. The only way I can think it is possible to actually harm him is by using some kind of fire to burn maybe the papers that make up most of his body, or the usual weakness of the Devil Fruits, water, and Sea Stones."

At this point, Alvida-san nods and says, "Got it, but I don't even know what Sea Stone actually is, and I don't think that water is going to be easy to find and use in the middle of that forest. But we can create some homemade incendiary bombs using some strong rum that I took from some pirate I hunted and a matchstick to light it up, while it isn't the best solution, it should be good enough to burn some paper man, and should be especially effective in that forest as that kind of environment is perfect for the spread of fire."

Hearing that, I nod and agree with her idea, so we quickly head back to her ship to prepare a few rudimentary incendiary bombs using the bottles of rum that Alvida-san took, and soaked clothes wick, held in place by the bottle's stopper, used as a source of ignition, quite a simple design, but it should still be quite effective and of course we also take a pack of matchsticks to ignite the cloth.

Once ready, we don't waste any more time and quickly head into the forest to track down our targets, the Simon Pirates, making me once again truly feel grateful toward Jayr-san as his training once more showed its usefulness, especially the recent adventure on Little Garden which is the most important and useful at the moment. 

The forest is gigantic, clear, and archaic, it is obvious that without the presence of people, the forest was able to grow without hindrance covering most of the island in green. 

Its canopy is competed for by all kinds of trees in fact there are so many that I can only recognize and name a few of them, like kapok trees, banana trees, rubber trees, ceiba trees, oil palms, and many others, their leaves and branches allowed for just enough light to pass down for a motley of herbs to flourish in the flat, fertile grounds below.

Curling creepers suspended from a couple of trees, and a variety of flowers, which blossomed brightly, added colorful, scented elements to the otherwise mostly green and brown landscape, but I also recognize that those bright colors are more a sign of danger than something to appreciate, as thanks to Jayr-san's lessons, I can recognize quite a few among them.

Like those castor beans right in front of us, a colorful weedy plant, whose seed can be used to produce castor oil a liquid that can be used in food production as a preservative, as well as in medicine for a variety of benefits, but the same seeds also contain a lot of ricin, a very deadly poison so dangerous that if just a tiny amount is ingested, it can kill a person in a few days, moreover, ricin can also be turned into an aerosol and inhaled, transforming it into a truly dangerous biological weapon, and what is worse, is that any part of the plant also can contain ricin making it a deadly plant to consume.

I also noticed quite a few yellow oleander, plants with bright yellow flowers, while not as dangerous as the castor beans, these plants are also quite toxic, just touching it would probably cause a very bad rash while ingesting it will badly affect the heart causing it to go into a cardiac arrest which will really likely cause death.

And I also carefully look at those gympie-gympies over there staying as far away as possible from those nasty plants, they look quite harmless and mundane with their healthy green color, but those plants are some true pieces of work.

Their leaves are full of tiny, hollow hairs that, when touched, pierce the skin, break off the plant, and inject a toxin underneath the skin, and the toxin is a very nasty and dangerous neurotoxin.

After contact with the plant, the pain that ensues is apparently one of the most excruciating experiences one can endure, instant stinging and burning are the first two symptoms and can become more intense as time goes on, what is worse is that the pain of a sting can last for hours, days or even months.

One of the worst things about this formidable plant is that the hairs are so fine and light that they often become airborne, floating, stinging hairs can come into contact with the skin even if you're not right next to the plant, worse yet, they can damage your throat and lungs if inhaled, this is the main reason why as soon as I encounter those, I quickly lead Alvida-san away from them, because while those hairs will surely slip off her skin if she inhales it, she would still be affected by them.

And of course, how can I ignore the good old datura, an extremely toxic plant with white flowers, that can be used as both a poison and medicine thanks to its psychoactive properties.

(AN: For the readers who live in a place with a tropical climate, be careful as those plants really exist and are also quite common, especially the gympie-gympie which, despite the fact that in the fanfic I have exaggerated their toxicity, have a really high death count among horses and dogs, and even humans are among its victims so be careful. The more you know.)

Of course, the plants aren't the only danger in this forest as a hodgepodge of beastly noises, which were caused by rummaging critters and animals, reverberated through the air, and formed a chaotic orchestra with the sounds of several animals like birds, and reptiles, frogs, jaguars, snakes, monkey and many, many insects all engaged in a ruthless game of hunter and prey.

As I carefully look around for any trace that could lead us to our targets, I hear Alvida-san's voice as she complains, "We are too slow! This way we will never be able to find them! Isn't there a faster way to do this?"

Hearing that, I stop and just as I'm about to tell her that there isn't any, I suddenly remember my daily evening training with Jayr-san, when he puts me in that state of sensory deprivation to teach me to rely on my other senses instead of only my sight and think, 'Could that really work? After all, this island isn't too big, if I focus on listening and try to tune out the sounds of all the animals it could be possible to locate them...'

Coming up with that idea, I don't hesitate any more and ask Alvida-san to quiet down as I close my eyes and focus on everything that my other senses, more specifically my hearing can pick up, and instantly all I can listen to are the lively sounds of this island's forest, the cricking of the insects, the chirping of the birds, the mating call of the monkeys, the roars of the jaguars and the painful cry of the preys.

Everything is too chaotic and for a few moments, I'm disoriented by this constant and chaotic influx of information, but then I focus even more and try to filtres and tone down every uneeded sound turning them into a weak white noise in the background as I continue to search for our targets.

After a few minutes without any meaningful result, I finally picked up something some distance away from us, it started as some kind of unclear noise different from the usual ones of the forest, but the more I focused on it, the clearer it became, and after some more time, I finally can identify this strange noise for what is it, some people voices.

With newfound vigor, I focus even more on those sounds in order to track down their point of origin, and so, find our target position.

The more I focus, the weaker the sound in the background becomes, and in turn, the clearer these voices become, until, everything else disappears and I'm finally able to pick up a familiar lively voice that I can only associate with the Fish-woman with blue eyes named Saphir as she asks, "Ne, ne. Simon-sama! Are you sure this is the right direction? We have been walking for quite some time, and those ruins we are searching for are nowhere in sight! In fact, there isn't any sign of civilization on this island! It is only a wild forest!"

Quickly a condescending male voice, which I can only infer is that of the Seven Warlord of the Seas, Simon "The Divine", can be heard as he replies, "I have already told you this before! This is the right direction, it is natural that you can't see anything else but this forest, after all, the ancient civilization made sure to keep the location well hidden. But you don't have to worry about your little useless head, we are getting closer to the center of Na Island, and there we will find the entrance to the Ku Sivan Ruins! I won't make such a simple mistake now that we are so close... So shut your mouth and let me focus!" 

At this point, I have everything I need, so I open my eyes, turn my head to look at Alvida-san, and with a giddy smile I say, "I did it! Just like Jayr-san taught me! I found them!" making Alvida-san nod and say, "Good, now lead the way! The sooner we take care of those the sooner I can reunite with my man!"

Hearing that, I nod back to Alvida-san and quickly start to lead her through this wild forest making sure to avoid all the animals and dangerous plants that would only delay us from making full use of my previous experience in Little Garden's hazardous jurassic jungle which makes this one appear like an amusement park.

After some time, I can finally see a group of six people walking ahead of us in the distance, it is made up of three females and three males, I can easily recognize the figure of the three Fish-women, Saphir, Rubis, and Emeraude, the Précieuses, plus the very tall and imposing figure of the Fish-man named Gad.

But I also see two unfamiliar faces, one is an average-sized middle-aged man, with a black goatee, black glasses, and a black beanie, with two white sparks on it, he wears an open red coat, with a big white collar, and two white surrounded in black spark at each side of the zipper, under the coat, he seems to wear a red unique suite, with a zipper in the front, he also wears two long scarfs, a white one around his neck and a blue one on his left shoulder, brown open gloves, two narrow brown belts around his legs, and polished dark red shoes.

I don't know who he is, but it is very likely that he isn't Simon, simply for the fact, that he is standing right at the back of the group while carrying what looks like a quite heavy sack.

Meanwhile, the other one is a man floating a few centimeters above the ground, he has black eyes and hair, which is covered by a small golden helmet, except for a black antennae, which stuck out partially on the front, a black goatee and what appears to be black sideburns. 

He wears an elaborate, pure white suit with gold edges and a cape-like design, underneath the suit he wears a purple shirt, he also wears a monocle over his right eye, as well as a thick golden neck brace, and what appears to be a gold disk behind his head, polished, black shoes, and holds a gold-covered book in his hands, overall, he looks like quite the gentleman, but from the air of absolute arrogance on his face, it is clear that it is only a facade.

There is no need to further confirm this, it is clear that he is the person in charge, the man behind everything that is happening in the Nanatsu Islands, the Captain of the Simon Pirate, the member of the Seven Warlords of the Seas, Simon "The Divine".

As I'm looking at them, I realize that they are too confident and careless to take care of their surroundings and thus notice our presence, so, I carefully start to plan our next moves, 'They are way too overconfident, this is good... if we carefully plan our next actions then we may be able to take care of them with minimal effort on our part and without taking a big risk too at that. First, let's categorize their level of danger.' 

I quickly start to study them while also analyzing their capabilities starting with the dark-haired man leading the group, 'Obviously, the strongest one is Simon who is very likely the floating man leading the group, from what Ko-san told us, I know that he ate a Logia Type Devil Fruit fed by Ko-san to save his life when he was a kid, and just like Jayr-san explained he can create, control, and transform into pieces of paper at will, and from the fact that he is floating, it is clear that Jayr-san was right in guessing that he could also fly or float using the light weight of the paper to his advantage. He is the first one we have to take out using a preemptive attack using the rudimentary incendiary bombs.'

Then my gaze moves to Gad and the three Fish-women, and see that Gad is carrying what looks like a cocoon made of sheets of paper, while Saphir is carrying a simple glass jar that contains some kind of lilac liquid, 'While they are physically strong Saphir, Rubis, and Emeraude aren't too dangerous, sure they techniques are able to hit a Devil Fruit User like Alvida-san, but the damage that they can deal isn't that worrying, after all, Alvida-san was hit quite a few time, but she was still able to get up quickly after, despite that, I think it is better if I fight them... But the same can't be said for Gad, his warning shot at that time already looked pretty lethal by itself, showing that he is on a whole other level compared to the Précieuses, fighting all 4 them together is too much for me... maybe using Soru for a surprise attack will allow me to at least daze him long enough to take care of those three so that I can focus entirely on him after.'

After that, my gaze lands on the last person of this group, the average-sized middle-aged man, with a black goatee, 'And he is the most troublesome one, I don't know anything about him, he could be anything, an excellent fighter, one that focuses on support, a Devil Fruit User, there isn't much I can gather from looking at him, only that he has considerable physical strength as he is able to easily carry that heavy looking sack, and that he appears to be at the very least a capable swordsman looking by the sword attached to his hip. With only these he could probably be the least dangerous person in this group, especially for someone like Alvida-san who can't be harmed by such common means, so after attacking Simon with the rudimentary incendiary bombs, I think that Alvida-san should fight him, while I fight Gad and the Précieuses.' 

After quickly analyzing them and coming up with a simple but hopefully effective plan, I look at Alvida-san, who is standing beside me, to tell her my plan, but before I can even utter a single word, she loudly slams her heavy spiky Iron Mace on the ground and comments, "Ara ara, look what we have here! A bunch of lowly pirates ready to get their ass kicked by the most beautiful woman of the seas!"

I reign in the strong impulse to let out a groan and facepalm as Alvida-san just threw away the only big advantage we had over these people.

Soon after that, the six people of the Simon Pirates all turn around to look at us in perfect synch, all of them with annoyed expressions on their faces, all but Gad whose eyes once again become heart-shaped as he comments, "Oh yeah, señorita! You can kick my ass as many times as you desire! You can even step on m- Ouch!!" which makes him instantly earn a triple elbow blow from the annoyed Précieuses.

At the same time, as Simon continues to simply watch with an irritated expression on his face, the average-sized middle-aged man with a black goatee asks with a mocking expression, "What the fuck do you want, you tall bitch? Get the hell out of here with your boy toy before I make you!" 

In response to that, Alvida-san simply snorts out loud, raises her spiky Iron Mace, and lets it rest on her shoulders, showing clearly her intentions.

Seeing that, the average-sized middle-aged man with a black goatee, hands over his sack to Rubis while saying, "Take this, I'll take care of that fucking woman and brat..." and Emeraude looks at us with a worried expression as she says, "Zabal, don't underestimate them, be careful especially the wo-" but them middle-aged man who I now know is called Zabal quickly interrups her, "I don't care about that, Greeny. I just have to quickly kill them so we can resume and quickly reach those Ku Sivan Ruins and finally leave this fucking place!"

At the same time, from behind them, Simon calmly commands, "Zabal hurry up and get rid of them, I don't want to waste anymore time here with these mundane matters!"

Hearing his order, Zabal doesn't hesitate and quickly draws his sword and rushes toward us, in response I get ready to counterattack but then I quickly realize that he is heading straight for Alvida-san, who still remains in the same position with no clear intent on defeading herself, and seeing that, I relax a little but remain ready to act in case something unexpected happens.

Soon Zabal is in front of Alvida-san and thrusts his sword aiming at Alvida-san's throat with pinpoint precision with the objective of ending this battle with a single deadly strike.

At the same time, Emeraude exclaims, "Be careful!" of course, such shout isn't directed at Alvida-san but at Zabal as she obiviously remember Alvida-san's powers as she saw it in action not too long ago, but the warning came too late, just as the tip of Zabal's sword touches the skin of Alvida-san's throat, suddenly it slips off course making Zabal lose his balance because of the unexpected shift, leaving him open to Alvida-san's counterattack, which swiftly comes as she swings her huge, spiked Iron mace with a single hand. 

The Iron Mace hits Zabal right on his open side with such power that the sound of his bones being crushed can clearly be heard, then Zabal is sent flying and crashes through several trees before he lands on the ground uncoscious with the white of his eyes showing and a fountain of blood gushing out of his mouth. 

Seeing that, I can't help but sigh while thinking, 'As expected, Alvida-san's physical power is still as monstrous as I remember, maybe even a little more because I'm pretty sure that she wasn't that strong back then. I truly don't want to stand in that poor Zabal's place, it will be already be a miracle if he is even able to stand again after that hit.'

While thinking that, I can't help but notice the enraged expression on Simon's face, but what his strange is that he isn't looking at us, but he ist staring at the downed figure of Zabal as he mutters, "That fucking useless failure..."