Chapter 431 | Jaya

431 | Jaya

Robin took in the view before her as the first rays of dawn lit up the island of Jaya. The cold morning wind welcomed her as she stood atop a grassy cliff overlooking the land and sea sprawling below. 

The disaster wrought here just weeks prior by the Blackbeard and her brothers fighting had been catastrophic, yet nature always found a way to heal and rebuild. 

Sprouts of green could already be seen poking through the ashen soil in places. Trees not fully uprooted were budding new leaves to replace those lost. Animals crawled forth from their hiding places to investigate and start anew. The people too, those who had survived, and the new coming pirates and merchants were also picking up the pieces. 

New structures already were taking shape. It was mainly due to Luffy's bounty-hunting organization that many upcoming bounty hunters were also here. This was also the reason many merchant ships were also docking rather then avoiding the island altogether. 

Taking over Jaya really was a good decision on Luffy's part. Robin also noted a few individuals who might or might not have connected with the revolutionary army. Even though they wanted to be discrete, Robin had her ways in knowing who was who. Years of being undercover and hiding had given her more than a few skills. 

Mock town usually wasn't this peaceful. Or at least usually this type of town would be hard to navigate, but that wasn't a problem.

The moment Johnny had brought her down from Skypiea, they entered Mock town. Some pirates were foolish enough to approach them with not-so-good intentions, and let's just say, Johnny and Bartolomeo, didn't hold back much. 

The sheer utter dominance calmed the pirates down, giving everyone a heads up to not mess with their group. 

For now, Johnny was out there flying in the sky, looking for anything noteworthy, while Bartolomeo was picking up fights in local bars. 

They had to keep themselves buys somehow. Robin walked the streets wearing her usual oni mask, catching eye of any onlookers. But unlike before they stayed away. It seemed Johnny and Bartolomeo's showing off his power left an impression on them.

That was usually the way. Pirates tended to follow the strong after all. 

As she walked through the new Mock town, she started to wonder about her past. She knew what it meant to endure tragedy, to lose everything dear to her. The horrific purge of Ohara still haunted her dreams from time to time. But things were much more… peaceful now. 

Robin stopped at the port, standing in one of the high rocks from where she could get a clear view of things.

She closed her eyes, letting the sea breeze dance through her long black hair. The scent of salt and fish flowed around the area. 

It seemed some fishermen were also trying to set things up here. That was good. While Alabasta was thriving, the land was really harsh compared to Jaya. The small island had much more greenery and good land. 

So if the problem with pirates were dealt with, this could turn out to be a really good island. The setting up of the bounty hunting organization was for this reason. And it seemed to be working for now. 

The land of Jaya really nudged the memory of Ohara. But she shook her head, she centered her mind on the present. The past was done, there was no changing it. 

What mattered now was the future she had found, this new family she belonged to. A contented smile crossed her face. After so many years alone, she had a home again. 

Still, one loose end remained before she could truly move forward without reservation. Her fists balled up as she thought about that man. 

Spandine, the man responsible for Ohara's destruction. The idiotic ambitious man that she blamed for the destruction of her home. In reality, there were others at play here. The world government being the main reason. But still, Robin blamed Spandine as much for it. 

Robin's eyes snapped open as she spotted the familiar caravel sailing around the horn of the island's western peninsulas toward her location. A small smile quirked her lips.

"It seems they are back," she said, turning on her heel, as she strode towards the Going Merry.

The journey took longer than expected. Maybe they should bring Momoo with them next time. But then again, that might not be needed. They did recruit a new shipwright after all. 

"Yo Robin!" Usopp was the first one to call out. Covered mostly in bandages, his right arm in a cast. It seemed Enies Lobby was harsh on him. "We are back!"

Aisa was the first one to jump from the ship, Robin's instincts kicked in as she caught her, "Yay! We are back!" 

"I am Groot!" the small tree creature also joined in the on the hug, almost making her fall.

After that Aisa quickly jumped down from Robin and landed on the ground, "Land! Finally! I missed you so much!" the small girl said, kissing the ground, making the looker chuckle, while Robin shook her head. 

It seems that, Aisa's first journey on sea turned out to be a lot wild than expected. So she really was glad that she was back safe. Robin looked over the crew, noticing that almost all of them had bandages covering their forms. 

They really had a tough time it seems. But knowing the crew, this was the sort of thing they would do. They would give their all, to save one of their own. 

"Oh, you guys are back!" Johnny said coming down from the sky, going back to his human form. "I thought I spotted the ship…" he said going towards Yosaku and giving his friend a fist bump.

Yosaku grinned back, but winched when his injurious flared up, making Johnny laugh. 

"You look like shit," He said with a grin, before coughing when he noticed Aisa and Groot looking at him. 

Gin snorted, "Consider yourself lucky, that you didn't come… Enies Lobby was a lot harder than we expected. Even I had too many close calls…" 

Johnny rolled his eyes, "Nah, if I was there, it would have been a breeze!" he said, flexing his biceps while others rolled their eyes. 

"Oh, yeah? I'm pretty sure I can beat your ass now," Yosaku grinned, only to get cut by Law, who went all doctor mode on them. Prohibiting them for fighting or any hard training for at least three days. 

It seemed to disappoint Yosaku, who really wanted to show off his new skills. But accepted it. 

Franky also came down from the ship, "Huh, Jaya! Haven't been hear for a long time," he said, grinning ear to ear, "Oi, Anchor? Where's your smithy? I wanna do some work?" 

The smith in question snorted, "My main smithy is far-far away," he said, "But I do have a small one. I need to set it up first." 

Franky nodded before looking around and introducing himself to both Robin and Johnny. He was a lot more energetic than others, eager to explore the island and tinker with new tech. Anchor and Usopp had taken it upon themselves to help him get adjusted in the crew. 

"Guys! Your Back!" Bartolomeo said, running towards them with a bunch of papers in his hands. He also had a grin on his face, "I have some great news!"

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