Thou Shall Not Die

As both Taiyo and Van Augur boarded the ship, Van Augur offered to become the scout, but Taiyo informed him that it wasn't necessary. Meanwhile, both Huginn and Muninn started speaking to Van Augur.

"We can share our vision with you. If you want, we can share our senses too—it would help you see farther," Huginn offered, as he could access multiple perspectives from the other ravens within a 25-kilometer radius.

"Alright, I'll accept," Van Augur replied as Huginn explained his abilities—abilities enhanced by the Devil Fruit Taiyo had given him. Upon accepting, Van Augur's vision suddenly expanded. He could now see through the eyes of the birds and ravens flying around them. It was an incredibly helpful perspective for Van Augur as the ship's sniper—something that greatly benefited his profession.

Even when Van Augur closed his eyes, he could still see within a 25-kilometer radius through the ravens' shared sight. Suddenly, he spotted a sea beast in the distance. Instinctively, he aimed and fired. But as he used his rifle, he quickly realized it lacked the firepower to hit something that far away—25 kilometers was far beyond its effective range.

"Ahhh, I guess this is fate's way of telling me to eat the Devil Fruit," Van Augur muttered. Taiyo had previously offered him the Warp-Warp Fruit—the same one obtained from Kuma. The Tori-Tori no Mi, Model: Nue, was still sealed in storage, untouched.

Van Augur then opened the chest Taiyo had given him. Inside was a fruit with strange swirling patterns. Without hesitation, Van Augur ate the Devil Fruit. His face twisted in disgust, a clear sign of the fruit's infamous horrid taste.

"So you decided to eat it. I thought you wouldn't, given your pride as a sniper," Taiyo said casually, still lying on his back and relaxing on the boat.

"The Devil Fruit's ability is extremely suitable for me as a sniper. It ensures I'm always out of reach. Plus, you gave it to me, so I felt it would be rude not to accept it," Van Augur replied, defending his decision.

"Devil Fruit or not, you must not waver in yourself. That kind of inner strength must always remain. Those who waver are weak," Taiyo said cryptically—his words seemingly unrelated to the current conversation. But Van Augur simply took them to heart, silently committing his captain's words to memory.

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Van Augur's new Devil Fruit abilities were incredibly powerful—especially with the input from Huginn. He could now teleport to any location he had previously visited, and also to any place he could currently see. This meant that, with Huginn's help, Van Augur could instantly travel anywhere within the 25-kilometer radius visible through the shared vision of the ravens.

He spent time testing his newfound abilities as they drifted across the ocean, letting the tides dictate their course. With no navigator on board, they were simply cruising wherever the waves took them.

Van Augur focused on mastering the teleportation of his bullets—trying to fire and warp them mid-flight without affecting their velocity or trajectory. It was incredibly difficult, especially since he had only just eaten the Devil Fruit. He continued practicing until evening, pushing himself to refine his control.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, Taiyo finally stood up, stretching his arms with a sigh. He decided to start rowing, bored of the aimless drifting.

Taiyo rowed while Van Augur continued to hone his control over the Warp-Warp Fruit. Sweat beaded down his brow as he loaded a pellet-sized bullet into his custom rifle, eyes half-closed, focused entirely on the vision being streamed to him from Huginn.

There, a gull lazily glided above the ocean surface—a perfect test subject.

He aimed not at the gull, but at the water below it, attempting to teleport the bullet just meters ahead of the bird's path. With a soft exhale, he pulled the trigger.

Crack!

The bullet vanished mid-flight, only to reappear a second later right where he intended—kicking up a small burst of seawater and startling the bird. It wasn't perfect; the shot lacked some of the speed it initially had, but it was progress.

"I can do better..." Van Augur muttered, adjusting the rifle and making a mental note about trajectory dampening during teleportation.

Meanwhile, Taiyo watched from the edge of the boat as he rowed, the oars cutting cleanly through the water.

"You know, if you master this, there might not be a place in the world someone can hide from you," Taiyo said casually but with a tinge of seriousness.

"That's the goal," Van Augur replied, lowering his rifle slightly. "If I can kill at twenty-five kilometers… if I can appear behind any enemy in a blink… then no one will ever see the shot that ends them."

Taiyo nodded. "Just don't let yourself rely on those Devil Fruit abilities. You should also make sure that you're body is strong to be able to fight in close-quarter combat."

Van Augur said nothing, but the silence spoke volumes.

The moon began to rise, casting a pale glow over the ocean. Huginn and Muninn perched on the mast, feathers ruffled slightly by the sea breeze, their eyes scanning the distance in every direction. Through them, Van Augur was already mapping the terrain ahead—reefs, shoals, and even faint outlines of a distant island barely visible to the naked eye.

"We might be reaching land soon," Van Augur said, tapping the side of his rifle.

Taiyo looked ahead, though he saw nothing yet. Still, he trusted Van Augur—and Huginn.

"Alright then," he said, standing. "Let's go pay them a visit. Maybe fate's got our next crewmate waiting."

And so, under the silver light of the moon, their small ship cut through the waves—two men, two ravens, and the winds of destiny guiding them toward the unknown.