Chapter 15: Chapter – 15 Majin no Gekkō
5 months later (Somewhere in South Blue)
BOOM! BOOM!
"Damn it…! Damn it…! Damn it…! Red Hair… What the hell do you want from me?!" shouted Hayes, looking at the man wearing a straw hat in front of him.
Today was supposed to be 'just' another one of those days, he was supposed to leave his home, and go to the Marine Base, spend his day delegating various tasks to his subordinates so that they can do all the work and he can take it easy.
But the sudden appearance of the Red Hair Shanks and his crew changed everything, and to make matters worse, the Red Hair Pirates directly intercepted him inside the Marine base after knocking out all the Marines inside the Base unconscious!
Now, he is all alone, and in front of him is not just Red Hair Shanks, it's his entire crew! They have surrounded him from all sides, he has no escape at all!
In the first place, what is a pirate worth over a Billion Berries doing here in South Blue? He should be at the Grandline, preferably the New World! It makes little sense for someone like Shanks to show up in South Blue.
Looking at Marine Rear Admiral Hayes who was scared shitless, Shanks smiled, walked forward, and while peering into his eyes as he said, "Now… now… you don't need to be so worried I am not here to harm you as I have nothing personal against you… It's just that I was curious… you see, a close friend of mine told me about a little rumor…"
"Curious? Rumor?" muttered Hayes with a surprised expression, and questioned with doubtfully, "The hell you mean?"
"You seem to have acquired a pretty good sword recently… one of the twelve Supreme Grade Swords to be precise after you raided the house of the most famous collector in all of South Blue…" said Shanks, and questioned, "Mind if I take a look at it?"
"!!!" Hayes' eyes widened in shock as he looked at Shanks and asked cautiously, "How do you know about that Sword?"
Shanks shrugged as he answered, "Didn't I already say it earlier… a friend of mine told me, I won't go too much into detail as to who that friend is, so let's skip that part…" Then asked, "So… do you mind if I take a look at that Sword?"
Although he didn't want to show Shanks that Sword that he acquired not long ago, reason told him that if he wants to live another day, he should comply with Shanks' request since he is asking so 'kindly,' "Fine… I will take you…"
"Good!" nodded Shanks with a smile, as he turned to his crew mates and said cheerfully, "All right you guys… We convinced the Marine Rear Admiral!"
"Yosha!" all the Red Hair Pirates save for Benn cheered, the man himself just shook his head with a smile. This is the style of the Shanks and the Red Hair Pirates, and he likes it.
Looking at the Red Hair Pirates celebrating, Marine Rear Admiral gritted his teeth in frustration. Facing bigwigs like the Red Hair Pirates, he really has no other choice but to agree.
…
Party's Bar, Foosha Village, East Blue
"Here… you go… just as you wanted, and just as I had promised… this Sword is for you…" Shanks spoke as he handed the sword, he had taken from Rear Admiral Hayes from the South Blue to Ryuma.
Ryuma stared at the Sword in Shanks' hand with a blank expression, as he questioned, "Are you really sure about this Shank?"
"What do you mean?" asked Shanks with a confused expression, and added, "Didn't you want one of the twelve supreme blades?"
"No… I mean, yes, I want it… and yes you promised it to me… but… when I… sigh… I don't know how to say what I want to say…" sighed Ryuma, as he scratched his hair.
"I know what you want to say…" said Shanks, and continued after a pause, "And yes… I am sure… I do not know what path you will follow in the future… but I am sure that I want to thank you… and therefore, I want you to have this sword…" then he used both of his hands to present the Sword to Ryuma and said, "So… here you go…"
"I see…" muttered Ryuma, and as his eyes became determined, he nodded, "All right then." And he took the sword presented to him by Shanks.
The moment Ryuma touched the sword, his eyes widened in horror, "This is!?"
He hadn't even touched the sword directly; it was only through the sheathe an unbearable pressure enveloped him. It was the will of the Sword, 'Is it trying to overpower me? Is it testing my worthiness?'
Regardless of what the Sword wanted, Ryuma gritted his teeth and fully unleashed his Color of Conqueror on the Sword as the pressure enveloping him slowly retreated back and the sword returned to normal as Ryuma breathed a sigh of relief.
Except for Shanks and Benn Beckman, no one in the Party's Bar realized what happened at that moment, however, seeing the result both the Captain and the Deputy Captain of the Red Hair Pirates smiled, and spoke, "It seems to have calm down for the time being, but it seems you will have to take your time and tame this sword."
Ryuma nodded, "I know," as he unsheathed the sword.
It's an Odachi with a uniquely grey-colored blade that seemed to shimmer like moonlight on water.
While Ryuma was inspecting the Odachi, Shanks went on to give him the information about the sword, "I don't know if you are aware of this or not… this one is an Odachi, the ethereal hue of the blade gives it an otherworldly aura, earning it the name 'Majin no Gekkō (The Demon's Moonlight)' Considering that this blade is one of the twelve Supreme Blades, it was undoubtedly forged by a master swordsmith using ancient techniques and mystical craftmanship imbuing it with extraordinary power."
"Majin no Gekkō?!" muttered Ryuma as he stared at the blade of the Odachi in his hand, and smirked, "The name seems fitting considering my Oni-tribe descent."
Just like the name suggests, the hilt of 'Majin no Gekkō' is wrapped in dark, indigo leather, signifying the blade's association with dark forces. The tsuba (guard) is intricately designed with images of oni and other demon-like creatures, further emphasizing the sword's connection to the supernatural. The pommel features a small, moonstone gem that seemed to draw anyone staring at it towards it.
As Ryuma looked at the moonstone gem, Shanks spoke, "I would be careful if I were you… it is said that that moonstone gem contains the essence of a malevolent spirit that is bound to the blade. Those who continue to stare at it seem to go insane."
Ryuma nodded, "Yeah… there is no doubt about it." Even if Shanks did not tell him about the last part, Ryuma could already feel something trying to invade his mind the moment he gazed at the moonstone gem, and spoke, "This sword seems to be a bit of a Malevolent, huh?"
Shanks nodded, "Yes… from the time it was forged till date… no one has been able to tame it… the ones using it always end up going insane… so… you have to be very careful…"
Ryuma understood where Shanks was coming from.
Everything in this world has a Will… Swords are no exception; they have a Will of their own. And the stronger a sword, the stronger its Will… Considering that Majin no Gekkō is one of the twelve rarest blades in this world, there is no doubt its Will is equally strong. When a swordsman tries to tame Majin no Gekkō but does not have a strong enough Will, the swordsman ends up being driven to insanity because of the Malevolent nature of this sword as it overpowers the Will of those weak users.
"Well, it is one of the twelve Supreme Grade Swords… it's obvious that mastering it won't be easy… but don't worry… I will master it!" declared Ryuma as he gazed at the blade of Majin no Gekkō.
Shanks chuckled, "All right then, I look forward to the day you have mastered it."
Ryuma nodded, "Yeah…"
At this time, Benn Beckman pointed out, "Still there is a problem you have to tackle before mastering the Sword… this sword… it seems a bit too big for you Ryuma."
"Now that you mention it…" muttered Ryuma as he also realized that Majin no Gekkō is really too big for his body size.
Benn continued, "Ryuma considering your current age and height, by the time you become a full-fledged adult, you should reach a height of 7 ft, meanwhile the length of Majin no Gekkō is nearly five meters… even if you master the blade, it would be difficult to use it effectively…"
Benn Beckman is right… considering his height, the preferred length of Majin no Gekkō as an Odachi should be about 3.5 meters… it's 1.5 meters longer… considering his physical strength, holding Majin no Gekkō won't be a problem, but length… a sword should be of appropriate length.
Although Ryuma can theoretically increase his body size with Moa Moa no Mi… that way, he would have to use the power of Moa Moa no Mi while wielding Majin no Gekkō, and that would consume his physical strength faster in battles… so… this problem needs to be dealt with.
Hearing Benn's words, Shanks sighed, "There is nothing we can do about it at the moment… to work on Supreme Grade Sword, a swordsmith of such caliber is required… now where to find one of such caliber?"
Hearing Shanks' words, suddenly a name appeared in Ryuma's mind, and that person lives in East Blue, and it's highly likely that that person would still be alive.
Thinking of that person, a smile appeared on Ryuma's face as he muttered, "I see… it's that time already huh?"
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone