Title: One Piece: Gacha Hunter of the Grand Line
Chapter 18 - The Supply Raid
Dawn arrived like a silent hunter, its first light crawling over the rooftops of Eldoradus. Inside the aqueduct tunnels, tension brewed thicker than steam. The ragtag resistance, freshly rallied under Calla's lead, moved with nervous excitement.
Ayman, crouched near a crude chalk map sketched on the tunnel wall, pointed at a fork in the path. "This hill leads to the southern road. The supply wagons come through here every week, right?"
Calla nodded. "They always travel with two wagons, maybe ten pirates in total. But don't let that fool you—those bastards are armed to the teeth."
Android 18 cracked her knuckles. "I'll take the front. Nothing survives a good ambush like me."
Yoruichi smirked and adjusted her scarf. "And I'll be your backup in case you get too cocky."
Tsunade pulled a bundle of herbs from her pouch. "I made some smoke bombs. Old shinobi trick. If things get dicey, toss them and regroup."
Ayman couldn't help but feel a thrill in his chest. This was the first real fight—not against beasts or nature, but against tyranny.
[New Mission: Intercept and Steal Pirate Supplies. Reward: 500,000 Berries. Bonus: Leave No Witnesses. Bonus Reward: 300,000 Berries.]
He glanced at the prompt and nodded.
They moved into position just before sunrise. The hill was steep and dusty, flanked by thorny bushes and broken stone markers from an old path. Ayman and Calla hid beneath a fallen log while the rest dispersed into ambush positions.
Soon, the unmistakable creak of wooden wheels echoed down the path.
Two wagons rolled slowly into view, each pulled by sturdy oxen. Pirates lounged lazily on the wagons, weapons slung over shoulders, unaware of what waited in the hills.
Then—
BOOM!
A smoke bomb burst in front of the lead cart. Chaos erupted. Pirates drew their weapons and scrambled for cover, shouting orders.
Android 18 came crashing down from a boulder, delivering a skull-crushing punch to the nearest brute. Yoruichi blitzed between trees, her movements fluid as lightning. Within seconds, three pirates were down.
Tsunade leapt into the fray with surgical precision, knocking one enemy into a tree with a spinning kick. Calla flanked left, her dagger finding a neck before the man even turned.
Ayman pulled a short blade from his belt and charged one of the rear guards. The pirate swung first—but Ayman parried, spun, and landed a kick square into his chest.
He wasn't the strongest, but the power shared with him through his bond with his summons made him faster, sharper.
One pirate tried to escape into the woods.
[Special Ability: Yoruichi's Shadow Flash Activated.]
A blur, a snap of cloth, and the pirate crumpled before he even reached the first tree.
In less than five minutes, the road was silent again. Eight pirates lay unconscious. Two were dead.
"Damn," Calla whispered, panting. "You weren't kidding about your crew."
Yoruichi wiped blood from her sleeve. "This was just a warm-up."
[Bonus Objective Complete. +300,000 Berries.]
Tsunade popped open one of the crates. Inside—medical supplies, dry rations, fresh clothes. Ayman looked into another—barrels of gunpowder and sealed crates of rifles.
"Jackpot," he said.
They loaded what they could onto one of the wagons, burned the other to make it look like a simple robbery, and disappeared back into the tunnel network before reinforcements could arrive.
By noon, the resistance's morale was soaring. Barrels of water were flowing. Men and women who had gone hungry for weeks now chewed dried meat and cleaned their wounds with fresh bandages.
Ayman watched it all quietly, leaning against a wall. Android 18 approached with a smug expression.
"You didn't look bad out there. Think you're growing into your big hero boots?"
He grinned. "I'll let you know once I fill them."
"Mmm," she said, stepping uncomfortably close. "Well, don't get cocky. The next fight won't be so easy."
Tsunade caught the moment and threw a wet rag at both of them. "Oi! Keep your flirting downwind from the sick bay!"
Laughter rippled through the group.
[Mission Complete. +500,000 Berries. Total Funds: 1,400,000 Berries.]
That night, as they gathered for a quiet meal, Calla unrolled a new map.
"The next step," she said, "is to strike their comms post. You cut the head, and the body loses balance."
Ayman nodded. One victory at a time.
But far away, deep within the stone walls of Kraken Jaws' fortress, a figure in red armor slammed his fist into a table.
"Who dares rob my supply lines?!"
The winds of retaliation had begun to stir.