Played Like a Fiddle

"Laugh Tale, why do you need to go there, Soren?" I turned to Rayleigh, "There is a secret marine base on the last island. They're holding Evos there, and each second is another chance they have to kill him."

Rayleigh's face turned stormy, "That's impossible. The only way to find Laugh Tale is to read all the Phoneyglys or have Roger's same ability. Is that why you need Luffy? Does he had the same ability as Roger?"

I nodded, "I found in some document that in a few rare cases, people are able to commune with the world. The ability is called 'the voice of all things.' I assume that Roger had this ability and that Luffy has it as well. But there is also a third party, those of the Three-Eye Tribe have the innate ability as well, but there's only one member left."

Rayleigh stroked his bread in thought, "If the marines have reached the final Island, it would be bad news for all of us." I turned to my teacher, "It's the One Piece, isn't it?" Rayleigh nodded, "Before, they never would have dared, but you made them desperate, so they pulled the ultimate card."

My heart started to beat faster, "What exactly is in the One Piece Rayleigh? What did you and Roger find?"

Rayleigh was silent for a minute before he sighed, "Joy Boy's treasure isn't gold, its knowledge the history of the entire world. Going all the way back even before the void century. I don't know how he found out, but Joy Boy was able to discover everything and left behind clues in the form of the Poneglyphs."

I thought for a minute, but I couldn't put the pieces together, "Then why would it be so dangerous, and why is talk of the void century forbidden?"

"Because it is the answer to everything, to how the World Government was formed to the secret behind devil fruits and even the history of haki itself." My heart skipped a beat, "You knew all this time? About everything!"

Rayleigh shook his head in defense, "On the Island, we found the final resting place of Joy Boy, but there was no treasure when we arrived there. Only a single Poneglyph, but not even Roger, could decode its true message, but he was able to make out one phrase. I will return!"

There was a moment of silence as my mind raced to try to think of what those three words meant, "So why does the World Government suddenly so interested in it. I thought they were the only ones who knew the world history?"

Rayleigh only shrugged, unable to answer my question, "It's a mystery, but one thing is for sure. You need to get Robbin somewhere safe. She's the only person in the world who can decrypt the message and put an end to all this."

I shook my head, "I'm not going to make her a prisoner. She's gone through enough already." There was a tense moment as Rayleigh held my gaze before he sighed, "I understand, but if you want to get to Laugh Tale, you're either going to have to convince Luffy here to take you. But I can already tell that's not happening, or you have to find someone else with the ability."

I looked back at Luffy one more time, "Fine, I won't make you go, but can you at least give me a hair?"

Luffy scratched his head, "A hair, why would you need that?" I sighed, "It would take too much effort to explain, but I promise it won't cause you or anyone else you care for harm. You have my word, as a pirate and commander of the Revolutionary Forces."

Smiling, Luffy reached up and grabbed plucked out a piece of hair, "Tell my dad that the next time we meet, I'll be the king of pirates."

I paused for a second, "But if I reach the Island first, won't I be the pirate king?" Luffy froze, and his smile turned into a frown, "No, that can't be true.."

I grinned as I smelled blood in the water, "Just imagine my face on the papers. Pirate King Soren has a nice ring to it, don't you think?" At this point, Luffy was turning red in the face, "You can't do that, right Rayleigh-San tell him that's cheating."

I saw Rayleigh wink at me before his face morphed into one of helplessness, "I don't make the rules. Whatever Pirate gets there first and claims the One Piece will become the pirate king."

Luffy looked like he wanted to scream before he turned and pointed at me, "I won't let you be the Pirate King. If you're going to Laugh Tale, so am I!" I smiled, "If that's what you want, I guess I don't have any other option."

"Wait a minute, Luffy, you're still in the middle of training. I can't as a teacher let you leave in the middle of your training." I waved his complaint away, "That's fine. You can teach him on the ride there."

An evil smile came over Rayleigh's face, "Unfortunately, I can't join you on your trip, but Luffy, if you want, Soren could teach you. That's the only way I'll allow you to travel." In my mind, I was cursing Rayleigh out but eventually, I slummed my head in defeat. He had played me like a fiddle.