On Kuri Beach, a desolate stretch of coastline situated within the Kuri region of the Wano Country, the rhythmic sound of waves crashing against the shore was the only noise breaking the silence.
There, lying unconscious upon the coarse sands, was a young man.
He possessed a gentle face that suggested a naturally kind disposition, and despite the disheveled state of his slumber, he appeared undeniably attractive.
For a long time, he lay there, the sea breeze ruffling his hair.
After several minutes, the man's face began to scrunch up in discomfort. Consciousness was slowly returning to him, dragging him from the depths of a heavy sleep.
His eyelids fluttered, struggling against the brightness of the day, until finally, he snapped his eyes open.
The first thing to welcome his sight was not his bedroom ceiling, but the vast, sandy expanse of the beach and the bright, azure sky above.
At first, the view did not seem to register with him. He blinked rapidly, attempting to adjust his eyes to the glare while his brain tried to process the sensory input.
The smell of salt water and the gritty texture beneath his fingers finally signaled that something was wrong.
Taking in the information all at once, the man suddenly jolted upright, his head whipping around as he frantically scanned his surroundings.
"WHAT THE FUCK? WHERE AM I?" The man immediately screamed, his voice hoarse. He was clearly not in the place where he had slept the night before.
Panic began to claw at his chest, his breathing becoming shallow and rapid.
However, before the man could spiral further into hysteria, a strange phenomenon occurred.
A small glass vial suddenly materialized out of thin air directly in front of him, floating alongside a folded letter.
The sudden appearance of these items left him frozen in confusion, momentarily overriding his panic. He stared at the floating objects, unsure of what to do.
Driven by an inexplicable pull, the man decided to reach out and take the letter.
He felt a strange instinct attracting him to it, a gut feeling that this paper held the answers he so desperately needed.
With trembling hands, he unfolded the paper. As he began to read, the words seemed to sear themselves into his mind.
[Dear Raust (Your name now),
You are probably wondering why you are waking up in a different place than where you slept last night. Well, I have an answer for you: you died in your sleep last night.
Due to your extreme exhaustion from work, you forgot to close the gas tank valve. The tank leaked, causing a massive explosion in your apartment that set the entire building on fire.
You were not woken up during the commotion due to your bad habit of wearing noise-canceling headphones, and you ultimately died from asphyxiation before the fire could even touch you.
Anyway, do not be too bummed out. I know your favorite anime is One Piece, and your favorite arc in One Piece is the Land of Wano arc.
So, I took it upon myself to transport you to the Land of Wano, specifically in the Kuri Region. You have arrived two years before its liberation.
To be exact, it has only been a week since the Marineford War ended. Of course, I did not forget to send you one of the strongest cheats that I had given out. It is the Essence of Healer. I do not need to tell you how strong it really is.
Also, I gave you a One Piece body with great talent, comparable to Ace. Anyway, enjoy your new life. I hope I do not see you soon.
Best Regards,
ROB
Reincarnation Department]
RauRaust's expression slowly morphed from confusion into pure horror. The reality of the situation crashed down on him.
He realized he was currently in a country under the tyranny of one of the most ruthless Emperors in the world of One Piece.
Raust thought that even living under the rule of Blackbeard would be preferable to Kaido, a monster whose primary goal was to plunge the world into the greatest war imaginable.
He knew the suffering, the starvation, and the pollution that plagued this land.
Trying to steady his trembling hands, Raust turned his attention to the vial that had appeared with the letter. Sure enough, the label on the glass read Essence of Healer.
Knowing he needed every advantage he could get to survive in this brutal world, he immediately popped the cork, tipped his head back, and drank the contents of the vial in one go.
'TaStes like Pepto Bismol,' Raust thought with a grimace.
Suddenly, a wave of profound relief washed over him. It was not just physical but mental. The liquid calmed his mind, easing the terror he felt about his current situation.
It was as if a cool stream of water had washed away his anxiety. Then, out of nowhere, it began. An injection of pure data assaulted his brain.
Medical knowledge, surgical procedures, anatomy, herbalism, pharmacology, and everything there was to know about medicine flooded his mind in an instant.
At first, the sheer volume of information made his head throb with immense pressure. It was overwhelming.
Still, a moment later, another feeling of relief washed over him. He could feel his cognitive functions accelerating, his thoughts running faster and faster until his mind could keep up with the injection of knowledge.
He remembered everything that was being given to him, filing it away into a perfect mental library.
After a few more minutes, Raust finished absorbing everything provided by the Essence. He stood up, feeling different. His body felt lighter, stronger, and purer.
Raust's Essence began to emit a subtle, purifying aura that targeted the pollution in his immediate vicinity, repairing the damage to the land beneath his feet without him even trying.
Raust then realized he was getting hungry. He decided to walk around the area to see if he could find any food to scavenge.
He also kept a sharp eye out for Devil Fruits. He recalled from his knowledge of the series that a Devil Fruit, specifically the Tori Tori no mi, model: Nue, had once washed up on the shores of Wano, though he wasn't sure if that was strictly canon or if his luck would hold.
As Raust walked deeper into the forest, he kept looking among the bushes, hoping his luck would grant him a power.
He did not care about the weakness of the sea that came with a Devil Fruit because he knew that his Essence of Healer could eventually cure him of curses, which was precisely what a Devil Fruit was.
As he kept walking and searching, he stumbled upon a river that fed into a lake. The sight was heartbreaking.
The Beast Pirates had poisoned it, using the water source as a dumping ground for the weapons factory waste.
The water was a murky, toxic purple. Raust felt a surge of confidence in the abilities the Essence had given him, as the knowledge in his head informed him exactly how to purify it.
Raust began to look for a container to hold the water so he could clean it in batches, as he knew he would not be able to cleanse the entire river source just yet.
As he was looking for a vessel, a sudden, piercing sound cut through the air. A little girl's scream echoed from a distance.
The sound triggered something instinctive in him. Without a second thought, Raust abandoned his task and sprinted toward the source of the scream, acting on a heroic impulse he didn't possess.
Due to his focus on reaching the origin of the cry, Raust did not even notice the incredible speed at which he was running.
The wind whipped past his face, and the ground cracked under his feet, a feat of athleticism that should have been impossible to reach in his previous life.
Raust just kept following the sound of the desperate screaming. Suddenly, he broke through a clearing and saw them.
In the distance, a little girl was fleeing for her life, followed by a large, hulking baboon.
Running alongside the little girl was a small white dog with curly fur. Raust narrowed his eyes and increased his pace, getting ready for combat.
When he reached the large baboon, Raust did not hesitate. He immediately launched a punch, connecting solidly with the beast.
The baboon was thrown back several meters due to the sheer strength behind RauRaust'sow.
It was a level of power that should have been impossible, and in this moment, Raust realized what the ROB had meant in the letter.
He truly had been given the same talent as Ace, the son of the Pirate King, a person who had shown limitless potential.
The little girl and the small dog skid to a halt. They both looked at Raust with wide eyes, then turned their gaze to the baboon that had been thrown back.
The creature was slowly standing up, shaking off the debris. It looked at Raust with pure, unadulterated anger, raising its weapon.
Raust dropped into a fighting stance. He decided to mimic the style of Ippo Makunouchi, the protagonist of the anime Hajime no Ippo.
He recalled exactly how Ippo explained the mechanics of punching with full force. Instantly, RauRaust broke down the motion.
The Essence of Healer analyzed the baboon's skeletal structure and weak points, while his new combat instincts processed the form.
The information transformed into a clear path of action in RauRaust. He waited until the large baboon was within his striking distance.
"Gazelle Punch," Raust muttered.
He launched himself forward, generating explosive power from his legs.
He threw a devastating hook toward the beast, executing the move with proper technique and flawless form, utilizing every ounce of strength he could muster.
When his punch connected, the large baboon's expression shifted instantly from anger to shock. The force of the punch was so great that the massive creature doubled over, coughing up blood.
Raust did not stop there. He followed the momentum with another punch, but this time, he aimed precisely where the large baboon's art was located.
Guided by his medical knowledge, he knew exactly where to strike for maximum lethality.
Due to his enhanced strength, the impact was catastrophic. The blow directly exploded the baboon's heart inside its chest.
The force of the uppercut made the heavy beast float in the air for a brief moment before it dropped down like a sack of bricks. Raust had effectively killed the monster with just two punches.
The little girl and the dog at her side looked at Raust with great shock. Their mouths hung open, unable to believe that this stranger had just defeated a powerful monster as if it were nothing.