"So it's random?" Shigaraki asked through gritted teeth and the other person's incessant laughter didn't help things.
"Well, every fruit looks different," Nika states simply with a nod.
The young chapped-lips male thought that was at least something.
'Got it." Shigaraki was already done with this conversation; unfortunately, the sun god wasn't done.
"Next up is Haki! A power formed by your will and spirit." Nika explained excitedly.
'Another power system?' The pale-haired man was surprised by the game's depth as he thought that devil fruits added a unique twist to sailing. Weak to water but offers great power; however, it's also a gamble of what you get unless there is an information network that could compile a list of fruits one day.
The chat was also pretty hyped.
"And what does Haki do?" Shigaraki put aside his dislike for that person's smile and asked. He wondered if it was some kind of spiritual power based on what the god said. Maybe a mental power.
"Just like with Devil Fruits, there are 3 kinds of Haki. First is Observation Haki. You can call it a Sixth Sense in a way. You can sense people's presence, strength, and the emotions of others. Next is Armament Haki. You can use Haki to coat your body or weapons to enhance offense and defense. Finally, there is Supreme King Haki, or sometimes called Conqueror's Haki. You can use Haki to directly affect the wills of others and make them faint or weakened in your presence.
"You can train to awaken both Observation and Armament Haki, but Conqueror's is something you're either born with or not. There are advanced applications for all three types of Haki, but where's the fun in spoiling everything?" Nika explained with a shrug and a laugh.
Shigaraki was once again blown away by this power. Haki sounded better since there was no weakness to the sea.
"How do you awaken Haki?" He asked a crucial question.
"Hmm. Well, if you ask me, a mix of training and putting your life on the line would be the best way. OH! I completely forgot! Armament Haki can also affect Logia Devil Fruit users and can harm them. They can transform into natural elements so unless you have a counter to a specific element or Armament Haki, you can't hurt them." Nika slapped his forehead.
The man listening felt his eye twitch as he almost missed crucial information. Logia users could use and transform into elements, but now it's stated that you literally couldn't hurt them unless you had Armament Haki or an elemental counter. Like Fire users getting doused by water.
It was also good to know that being in life-threatening battles and training could awaken it. Devil Fruits were instant power, but Haki seemed to be a more long-term strength, especially at the hinted advanced applications of each type of Haki.
"Got it. Anything else I should know?" Shigaraki got some good information and he wanted to get this tutorial over with so he could start.
"Hmm. Well, the stronger you are in the Sea of Thieves, you'll get a small percentage kickback to your real body's physicality and quirk strength." Nika laughed as he dropped that bomb.
Everyone went silent, even the chat…until it exploded.
"YOU FOR REAL?!"
"THIS HAS TO BE A JOKE!"
"Can you really get stronger in real life by playing this game?!"
"This trickster must be pulling our leg."
"What if it's real though?"
Discussions were on fire in the chat.
Even Shigaraki was stunned, completely speechless. 'Can it really be?' How could Sensei not know about this, or does he? If he did, then why didn't he tell him? Playing games and getting stronger sounded perfect.
'Fuck everything else. I'm going to grind the hell out of this game.' He completely dismissed League and every other game he played and decided to jump headfirst into this game. Even if he wasn't the biggest fan of pirates, he had to admit that they had a certain appeal.
No stuffy government telling them what they can and can't do. The freedom to do whatever he wanted and on his own terms with power systems like Devil Fruits and Haki. It sounded great.
"Any more questions?' Nika asked.
Shigaraki wracked his brain for anything else until he thought of that dock place.
"What are Trading Companies?" He was still confused about that.
"Ah, these are companies that you can take quests from and gain experience and gold. There are 6 of them. Gold Hoarders are all about buried treasure, secret riddles, and puzzles for a lot of money. The Order of Souls is about fighting skeletons and claiming their skulls. The Merchant Alliance focuses on delivering and transporting goods and animals. Hunter's Call involves fishing and cooking. Athena's Fortune is only available once you reach Pirate Legend. The last one is the Reaper's Bones. If you like fighting and stealing from other players, this will be the company for you." He explained carefully.
Naturally, the Reaper's Bones sounded the best to him, but since he was just a Playtester and these devices weren't widely circulated, it would probably be very difficult to gain experience. The Order of the Souls sounded like the best option for him. The Gold Hoarders sound pretty alright too.
"There are some helpful tips in your menu if you need more specifics." Nika reminded him with a smile.
Shigaraki nodded absentmindedly at the info dump he was just exposed to, but it did help a lot. His first goal would be to get to Level 50 in the Order of Souls Trading Company so he can access the Grand Line Seas.
He was pretty much done, and he's sure he can look at the menu to see how he could be a Pirate Legend, as he's sure it's probably just XP or something, but he had one final question.
"Do you have all three kinds of Haki and a Devil Fruit?" He asked in a serious manner. This person was called a god so it would be natural if he had all three types of Haki along with their so-called advanced applications. As for a Devil Fruit, that was what he was most curious about. Nika was definitely from the trailer he watched, and the ground was quite rubbery from where he walked and bounced around, but the cartoon effects were strange, which was why he asked.
"Yep, all three types!" He laughed and held up three fingers, "But as for a devil fruit…I mean there is one based on me, so kind of!"
"Based on you?" Shigaraki was very confused. Were Devil Fruits not just random fruit powers?
"Hmm. Devil Fruits are created through the imagination of living beings. 'Oh I wish I was this' or 'I wish I could do that' and because they are considered unnatural, they are cursed by nature--the sea. People wanted to be me, and so a fruit containing my power was born into the world." Nika seemed to love dropping bombs of insight.
Shigaraki didn't know how to feel about imagination power being introduced into the game, but he just thought it was for world-building so he didn't care too much, even if he thought it was corny. The chat, on the other hand, loved it.
"So does that mean I could find your fruit?" Shigaraki threw out the question but didn't really want rubbery or cartoon powers.
Nika suddenly looked quite serious and gave a smile, but this one was quite chilling.
"I don't think you'd be able to find it." He seemed to stare into his soul as he said this and Shigaraki didn't know why he felt so unnerved and that increased his irritation with this person. "But that's enough from me! Later!" His legs started spinning as he flew off into the distance.
'What an irritating guy. I don't want your stupid powers anyway.' Shigaraki consoled himself as he wanted something more suited to him. Maybe a decay fruit? But he already has that quirk, so maybe something similarly destructive? How would he even know what to look for?
He walked away and started looking through some settings until he spotted something related to streaming. There was an option to have a third-person perspective for his viewers that would be controlled by AI and he can also scramble his appearance for anonymity.
Changing his appearance to have whiter hair and smoother skin. He looked very similar to Sensei but with longer hair and a different facial structure.
Shigaraki confirmed the change and the stream was switched to a third-person view with him being able to see a camera lens floating around.
"Woah!"
"Is that what H8r looks like?"
"Cap."
"AI is really too advanced."
"It should've been me!"
He naturally ignored the nonsense from the chat window. There were Commendations that he saw for the tutorial that would give various skins, but he doesn't care about that right now. He can go back when he feels like being a completionist, but he needs strength.
On the menus and tips, he noticed that there were multiple seas to play in and what they meant. The East Blue was mostly for new players who want a pleasant experience, but they wouldn't gain any power in the real world, and getting Haki and Devil Fruits in this sea is impossible. There were also level and experience reductions here. The sea that he can only play in, the Four Blues Sea, has a low chance to find devil fruits and developing Haki, but there were no experience reductions.
The Grand Line Seas were actually split into Paradise and New World. Paradise had quite a decent chance to find Devil Fruits and even more common in the New World. Haki is still tough but manageable in Paradise, but more common in the New World. Also, once you become a Pirate Legend, which means hitting Level 50 in at least 3 Trading Companies, you can only play in the East Blue, Paradise, and New World.
There were also Guilds you could make once you reach The New World, and if you join or create one, you can only stay in the New World, but the rewards were great.
Leaderboards also played a huge part in getting power in the real world, so he made sure that he'd stay at the top.
He made his way back down to the beach, and luckily, he already knew how to swim thanks to Sensei, but there were tips on how to do so in the game if needed.
"Well now. I'd say you're as ready as you'll ever be. Allow me to show you the path." The Pirate Lord raised his skull cane towards the sloop and red mist. 'The Shroud is beginning to part, but there's one last part before your journey continues. You may be ready to sail, but your ship still needs repairs. Go and tend to her wounds."
The red mist parted and there was an eerie fire in the distance showing him the way. He dived into the water and began to swim with ease before making it to the rope ladder.
As he climbed up, he noticed that the sail had fallen over.
He didn't know much about ships but he knew that the mast falling over and snapping was pretty bad.
Fortunately, he was shown how to fix it and realized that it wasn't entirely logical because he knew he wasn't strong enough to lift it back into place.
Going below deck, he noticed a Wood Barrel and that he could only carry five wooden planks at a time in his Equipment Radial. Heading back up, he pulled out a blank and was directed where to put it, and the game did it for him as long as he stayed in range of the repair and focused on it. A few more planks and it was finished.
Next, he had to collect all the water that was poured in from the damage and throw it off the ship with his bucket. This also had a bit of game logic since it only took two full buckets to clear out all the water.
Finally, he was told to turn the Capstan to raise the anchor, which he did with some difficulty as it was heavy.
He dropped the sails, and it was time to head to sea.