Ikigai

Chapter 1:10

"I want to get stronger."

They all looked at her with wide eyes, glancing between each other before back to her.

"...Pardon?"

"I want to get stronger."

Truthfully, they had heard her the first time, it was just so out of left field, that they couldn't believe what they were hearing. For the past few days, she had largely kept to herself, only speaking a 'thank you' or an annoyed sigh when Zoro would talk a little too loud.

"Ok... in what way?" Nami asked, standing up from her spot on the wall and make her way over to [Y/N].

"....I didn't know there was more than one way to be strong." [Y/N] said, looking down at the walking stick in her lap and tilting her head to the side slightly.

"What, you been living in a box your whole life?" Zoro scoffed.

She shook her head slightly, still looking down.

"No, a cell."

"...What?"

"A cell."

He took a moment to think, before narrowing his eyes at the girl and reaching for his swords.

"...The fuck did you just call me?"

"Alright," Nami said, clapping her hands together, slightly turning to face the rest of the Strawhats, "we'll help you become strong. So in what way would you like to become strong?"

She thought for a moment.

"All of them."

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And so it was.

For the next three months, she learned everything she could from each of the Strawhats.

Some days, she would study with Robin in the rubble of the library, learning how to read and write new words and how they were used in a sentence; studying ancient texts and deciphering them, and overall, learning about the world outside.

She learned that the rocky formations that jutted out of the sea were called 'seastacks', and that the sandy bank she sometimes saw through the Madame's window was called a beach; she learned that in some places in the world, there are large pieces of frozen water called 'glaciers' that exist. She was still skeptical about that one. After all, the biggest ice she had seen were the ice sculptures that were sometimes present at the parties. Apparently, 'glaciers' were even bigger than that.

After a few sessions, Robin had gifted her a small notebook and pen.

Other days she would meet with Nami and look at her maps, watching her work as she drew and labeled the map with scary precision. [Y/N] watched in silence, for the most part, only occasionally asking about a certain spot on the map or any questions she had about the pronunciation of a certain word she was studying. On one occasion, Nami caught her doodling a replica of the map she was working on in her notebook, praising her for her talents and offering her older maps to copy.

Her time with Chopper was mostly spent talking about medicinal herbs and their uses, something she discovered she was very interested in. It was fun for her, learning the different plant types through the books Chopper had, and sometimes she would imagine herself in a lab coat, saving the day and treating the Stawhats the same way Chopper had treated her, kicking her feet in the air with her chin in her hand, humming cheerfully.

Everyday, she and Chopper would walk the island, surveying the local flora and gathering any useful herbs they found along the way, [Y/N] stopping periodically to scribble notes into her notebook for later review. The way the flowers and the grass swayed in the breeze, gently rocking back and forth listlessly fascinated her more than anything. She loved listening to Chopper talk; about the different uses for certain plants, about how to properly forage them, about the subtle difference between different species, all of it.