"M...ero.."
"Mr...ro.?"
"MR. ZERO!"
Crocodile's eyes shot open, and he took in deep labored breaths. He gripped his head as his 'own' memories flooded in. The memories were 'his', but they felt unfamiliar. He didn't go by the name Crocodile, but by Garrett and he was a Geologist.
"M-Mr.Zero, are you alright?" Ms. All Sunday, or known by her true name, Nico Robin leaned over his desk with a slightly concerned look. Crocodile didn't respond, his mind was racing to make sense of everything that was happening. Slowly but surely, he was starting to grasp the situation he was in....but understanding it didn't make it any less unnerving.
The last thing he remembered was exploring a cave when....it collapsed. "DID I DIE!?" He shouted and shot up from his seat. Garrett, or Crocodile suddenly stood up and was now towering over the 188cm tall woman with a deep scowl imprinted on his face. Nico Robin flinched and cautiously took a step back with a bead of sweat rolling down her forehead.
"M-Mr. Zero. Did the information displease you?" Robin asked, her voice involuntarily cracking in fear. He wordlessly looked down at Robin, causing her to take another step back. An eerie silence ensued them before the words "I'm going out..." escaped Crocodile's lips as he turned and walked away. As soon as Crocodile was gone, Nico Robin let out a deep sigh of relief...
Outside of 'Rain Dinners', a casino that also served as his secret base of operations. Crocodile stood in the sand by the Sandora river, the dry desert air was strangely refreshing for him, and the quietness of the desert helped to ease his mind.
"I DIED! I REALLY DIED!" He shouted. He had put on a facade when he realized Robin was there, but now that he was alone. He let out his true emotions. "And I reincarnated! Did I just turn One Piece into an Isekai!?" He frantically rubbed his scalp in distress. After a few minutes of tweaking out, he sighed and looked up to the sky, finally accepting his fate.
As he calmed down he had finally taken notice of a translucent screen floating in front of his face. Crocodile smiled widely as he read the screen.
[System Initiating....]
"I get a system!? Yess! I'm not all alone, I get system cheats!!" He threw his hands into the air and exclaimed. He looked back at the screen to see it had changed.
[System Initiated. Host, welcome to the Status Checking System. This system allows you to check the status of anyone or anything.]
Crocodile quickly skimmed through the window, he just wanted to see his stats. "Show me my status!" He shouted. The system screen changed and he looked at his status in anticipation.
[Name: Crocodile (Desert King) (Mr. Zero)
Age: 44 Years Old
Physical Status: Healthy
Mental Status: Excited, Distressed
Devil Fruit: Sand-Sand Fruit
Haki: None
Weapon(s): Poison-Laced Gold Alloy Hook]
Crocodile read the screen excitedly. It was cool to see his status, but his smile strained when he made it to the end and didn't see his stats. "Maybe I read too fast and missed it." He laughed awkwardly and reread the screen. He read it a third time, a fourth time, and a fifth time and he still couldn't see his stats. At this point, his smile was completely gone.
"Where are my stats?" He asked.
[Your status is being shown to you, host]
Crocodile let out a strained laugh. "No, not this. I'm talking about the numbers that represent my physical attributes." His tone raised as he spoke. A simple [?] was all the system could come up with as a response. At this point, Crocodile re-accepted his fate. He sighed. "Alright then. What CAN you do then?" He asked.
[You can check the status of anything]
"Status?" Crocodile rubbed his chin, status had a bunch of different meanings. But, he decided to try something. "Show me the status of the Straw Hat Pirates." Much to his amusement, the system actually complied.
[Monkey D. Luffy:
Age-17 Years Old
Physical Status- Injured->Healing
Mental Status- Happy
Roronoa Zoro:
Age- 19 Years Old
Physical Status- Injured->Healing
Mental Status- Calm
Nami:
Age- 19 Years Old
Physical Status- Injured->Healing, Poisoned
Mental Status- Distressed, Angered
Ussop:
Age- 17 Years Old
Physical Status- Injured->Healing
Mental Status- Distressed
Vinsmoke Sanji:
Age- 19 Years Old
Physical Status- Healthy
Mental Status- Calm]
"Why isn't it as descriptive as when I asked for my own status?" Crocodile asked.
[When requesting information on multiple targets, we simplify. When asked about a single target, the information is more thorough]
Crocodile nodded at the screen. Deciding that he had moped enough, he dusted himself off and made his way back to Rain Dinner's. He wanted to make a plan of action, especially if he wanted to avoid ending up in Impel Down. On his way back, he thought of many plans, some more practical than others. He had decided on a plan of action as he finally arrived at Rain Dinner's.
"Welcome back, I assume Mr. 3 angered you." She asked. Crocodile silently walked past her and sat in his desk.
"Word of his victory and Princess Vivi's death is good news, but not when it comes from a liar." Crocodile responded. "Those brats are still alive. How long until they reach Alabasta?"
Robin's eyes slightly widened. "Mr. 3 lied? But, I've already sent him the eternal pose to Alabasta." Crocodile simply closed his eyes and tilted his head upward. "....Alright then. What's the status of their distance?" He sighed.
Seeing Crocodile's reaction, she decided to try and ease his disappointment. "Good news is that Little Garden is about 7 days away from Alabasta." All the while, Crocodile wasn't listening. He was too busy staring at the newly formed system screen.
[The Straw Hats are 11 Days away from arriving on Alabasta. They are currently traveling to Drum Island]
"So, I can even ask about the status of things like this." He whispered. He had totally forgotten about Nami's sickness, causing their detour to Drum Island. He leaned forward in his chair, interlocking his fingers. "Nico Robin. Call our officer agents and let them know, if they don't arrive within the next 9 days, don't bother arriving at all." He grinned, realizing that now was the time to prepare for their arrival.
To Be Continued.....