The Straw Hat Pirates' Scientist

"Of course they're temporary workers!"

"I don't want them as my crew!" Luffy immediately picked his nose, looking like he was absolutely right.

The companions he's looking for have to be interesting; whether they're pirates or wanted criminals doesn't matter.

But he absolutely cannot be a real bad guy!

Although Alvida's subordinates are respectful enough to him, Luffy doesn't like them.

Because they used to burn, kill, and loot; they did absolutely nothing but evil.

Luffy wants to be the Pirate King, not the King of Villains.

In his mind, the Pirate King is a free-spirited man who bravely adventures on the sea.

He is determined to conquer this vast ocean and eventually find the legendary One Piece.

Only then can I stand tall and walk up to Shanks and tell him...

I'm also a very good pirate; my fists are even more powerful than a pistol!

Luffy doesn't like to think too much; his mind is that simple.

"..."

Zoro's face immediately darkened.

When we boarded the ship, we saw more than a dozen pirates, plus this not-so-small ship.

Although it's far from the setup of One Piece, it at least looks like a pirate crew.

Now they've been told that the ship was stolen on a whim, a temporary ambush by pirates.

It's fair to say that, apart from Luffy, Roon, and Zoro, the rest of the pirate crew are all temporary additions.

"Don't worry about it, Zoro. Sooner or later I'll have my own ship!" Luffy said with a big laugh.

Clearly, he was also very dissatisfied with Alvida's pirate ship.

However, he doesn't have the money to buy a boat right now.

We can only use Alvida's ship as a temporary means of transportation for now.

In Luffy's eyes, this thing was not much different from the small wooden boat he used when he first set sail.

"As for boats, they'll be available once we reach Xirob Village."

Ron had no intention of forcibly interfering with Luffy's sailing route; letting things take their natural course was the best approach.

What he wants to do most is to develop more new products and strengthen himself.

Since they chose to join Luffy's crew, they will inevitably have to confront the World Government in the future.

When dealing with the World Government, one cannot avoid Im.

Moreover, Ron wanted to live freely in this world and didn't want anything weighing him down.

Whether it's the so-called laws of the world government, or that old immortal sitting on the Void Throne,

None of them will do!

This means he still can't get around Im's existence.

Since we can't avoid him no matter what, there's only one answer...

The throne has been overturned!

The pirate ship weighed anchor and set sail once again, riding the waves.

"Alright, the pirate crew is finally ready to set sail."

Luffy was in a great mood, holding his straw hat and feeling the sea breeze, with an excited expression on his face.

Even Zoro, standing next to him, had a slight smile on his face and said, "It seems like a very thrilling adventure is waiting for us ahead."

Ron, however, didn't want to pay any attention to the two of them. Instead, he eagerly went to a deserted corner of the pirate ship and opened his lounge.

"What is that?"

Zoro was stunned when he saw Ron take out a small gadget, throw it on the ground, and conjure a house with a bang. He couldn't help but ask, "Is Ron also a Devil Fruit user?"

Seeing Zoro's shock, Luffy immediately laughed and said smugly, "Ron isn't a Devil Fruit user. He's a very talented scientist and the first partner I found."

This thing is called a universal capsule, and he invented it!

"You could fit such a huge house inside that tiny capsule."

As he spoke, Luffy stretched out his hand and gestured exaggeratedly in front of him before continuing:

"Furthermore, Ron said that when materials are plentiful and technology advances, even our pirate ships can be stored in capsules."

That way, when we go on adventures on the island, we can bring the boat with us without worrying about it being damaged or stolen.

Luffy's eyes were practically sparkling as he spoke.

A pirate ship that can be carried on your person is obviously so cool!

Next, Zoro and Luffy started chatting, and Zoro discovered Luffy's obsession with the straw hat.

So I also asked about the straw hat.

However, Ron didn't care about any of this.

At this moment, he has devoted himself entirely to scientific research.

Most of the materials needed for a C-grade energy shield can be found in the previously obtained material boxes.

Ron has decided to use points to buy the missing items.

Points are meant to be used, aren't they?

Saving it up won't earn interest, and it certainly won't generate any interest.

Its greatest use is to transform it into one's own strength.

With this in mind, Ron was confident that he could create the C-grade energy shield within 10 days.

Even if his strength doesn't increase, at least in the first half of the Grand Line, there won't be many that can break through his energy shield.

Ron can be invincible because of this.

He became even more excited as he thought about it.

"Let me see just how strong this C-grade energy shield really is!"

Filled with anticipation, Ron embarked on a frantic research project that lasted day and night.

.......

Time flies and passes quickly.

Nine days passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, a small island appeared ahead, and the pirates on the lookout discovered a village on the island using their binoculars.

"Lord Zoro, we've almost run out of food on the ship. We should resupply. Shall we land on the island ahead?"

A pirate immediately stepped forward to inquire.

"Is there no more meat?" Luffy asked.

"That's all, just some rotten vegetable leaves and bread left."

"Where's the wine?" Zoro asked, his brow furrowed.

"We only have two buckets of fresh water left!"

"Go buy some meat!"

"Go buy some wine!"

Luffy and Zoro said in unison.

"Report, report, report..."

At that moment, the pirate in charge of observation exclaimed in surprise again.

"Captain Luffy, it seems pirates are raiding a village on the island ahead. Should we still go ashore?"

The others were also invigorated upon hearing this.

After all, they are all pirates, and pirates usually end up fighting each other when they meet.

They used to follow Alvida and committed all sorts of evil deeds, robbing many pirates.

But how could Alvida's strength compare to those two adults before her?

They would naturally neither dare nor be willing to fight against a powerful pirate crew.

But why not take advantage of the opportunity to bully other pirate crews, plunder them, and satisfy your cravings?

Just as Luffy dislikes them, these pirates are traditional pirates, and also one of the more normal ones in the pirate world.

Everyone has a demon deep inside, a desire for a life of bloodshed and a thirst for blood.

"Interesting. This is the first time I've encountered a pirate crew raiding a village!" A sharp glint flashed in Zoro's eyes.

However, he did not give any orders, since it seemed that such matters should be decided by Luffy, as the captain, in Zoro's opinion.

"This is outrageous! These guys are looting the village! If they destroy it, where am I supposed to buy meat? Zoro, let's go take them down!"

Luffy immediately roared.

"Alright!" Zoro slowly reached for the Wado Ichimonji at his waist.

"Oh, oh, oh!"

"Charge!"

"Dengbei Dengdao!"

The pirates immediately became excited.

After all, working under Luffy these past few days, they couldn't rob villages or kill people, which made them somewhat restless and hungry.

Now that they have the opportunity to face fellow pirates as enemies, they naturally have no scruples and can fight to their hearts' content.

"Is it that lively?"

At that moment, Ron, with dark circles under his eyes, walked out of the lounge, holding an orange in his hand and slowly peeling it.

Although he looked extremely tired, his eyes shone with an unusual light, and he exuded an unprecedented confidence.

In the past nine days, Ron has only slept three times, and has been almost constantly busy at the research table.

We've finally developed the C-grade energy shield!

He glanced at his left hand instinctively, where he wore a gemstone ring on his middle finger.

It looks somewhat like a sapphire, but upon closer inspection, you'll find that there appear to be several intricate patterns within the blue gemstone.

Such as crescent shape, six-pointed star, triangle, etc.

These intricate patterns are arranged and interwoven to form a unique three-dimensional texture.

Even a layman could see the extraordinary nature of this ring.

This is the C-grade energy shield that Ron created.

The ring is merely its vessel; the shield can be activated instantly with a single command from Ron.

The ring will then unleash a beam of energy, creating an oval shield 3 meters high and 2 meters wide in front of Ron.

Somewhat similar to the Barrier Fruit, the area of ​​the energy shield is this elliptical shape.

Ron can control the shape of the shield using brainwaves, but its area is fixed.

No matter how its shape is changed, its size will only be that of an oval.

But it's enough to protect Ron himself!

"The only thing I need to pay attention to is constantly recharging the shield!" Ron muttered to himself.

Because it's an energy shield, its energy needs to be replenished.

After all, this isn't a 3S-class energy shield with unlimited energy.

Ron wouldn't even dare to imagine the blueprints for that level of technology, let alone props.

That was a high-end product that required hundreds of millions of points even for a single fragment of the map.

There are two ways to recharge a Class C energy shield.

One type requires solar energy; as long as it is exposed to sunlight, it can quickly convert light energy into an energy source within the medium.

Another type is lightning energy. Ron can use the ring as a lightning rod to absorb lightning energy and recharge the energy source inside the ring.

In other words, besides its shielding function, the C-level energy shield is practically a lightning nemesis.

When the shield is out of energy, it absorbs lightning energy and converts it into an energy source. Once the energy source is fully charged, it can be converted back into a shield to block all attacks.

The perpetual cycle perfectly counters lightning-attribute attacks.

"Finally, I don't have to worry about my safety anymore!"

Although it's not an absolute defense, Ron is confident he can make good use of it.

"Ron, we need to land on the island."

Pirates are raiding the village. I need to buy meat. They've destroyed the village. How am I supposed to eat meat now?

"Do you want to come with us and take them down?!" Luffy said angrily.

It was as if the pirates on the other side had already ruined all of his beloved meat.

"Are pirates attacking the village?"

Ron instinctively looked into the distance.

At this moment, the pirate ship was getting closer and closer to the island.

With Ron's enhanced body after taking the Deep Sea Warrior's enhancements, his eyesight was sufficient to see the situation above clearly.

After all, the Deep Sea Warrior serum not only enhances strength, but also has some enhancement effects on other bodily functions.

It's just that it focuses more on strength and swimming ability.

Ron spotted the pirate ship moored on the shore of the island at a glance.

But the pirate flag on it made him frown slightly.

"It's the Black Cat Pirates!"

Ron was also somewhat surprised.

I originally thought I would encounter the Black Cat Pirates when I got to Syrup Village, but I didn't expect to run into them here.

But Ron knew that this must have been something that some of Crow's men had done on their own.

Clooney probably doesn't know about this.

After all, the order given to them by Kro was to obediently wait for his plan.

This would likely cause unnecessary trouble by looting the village, which could affect his plans.

Chloe is very intelligent; she would never do something so stupid.

Therefore, this must have been done by the Black Cat Pirates, who couldn't suppress their inner brutality and thirst for blood.

"Interesting. Let's test the effectiveness of the C-grade energy shield."

Thinking this, Ron put the orange in his mouth and slowly said as he chewed:

"Then let's beat them up!"