Mont Blanc Cricket

Montblanc Cricket (モンブラン・クリケット, Monburan Kuriketto) is an inhabitant of Jaya Island, living in a small home behind the facade of a castle. He is the distant descendant of Montblanc Norland. He and the Saruyama Alliance aided the Straw hats in getting to Skypiea.

Appearance
Cricket is middle aged man with blond hair. He has chestnut like growth on his head which he inherited from his ancestor, Norland. He is usually seen smoking with a cigarette in his mouth. On his left arm, Cricket has a tattoo of a chestnut with the word "Maroon" written across it.

Abilities and Powers
Cricket is a skilled diver who is able to dive at great depths. However because of his constant diving without rest, his body had taken it's toil. Cricket is also a skilled martial artist. He was able to keep up in his fight against Sanji before succumbing to Decompression sickness.

Cricket's Past and the Duel against an Ancestor
Since he was a kid, Cricket was always laughed at by everyone due to the shame brought by the story of his ancestor, Norland. Ashamed of his family, Cricket ran away from home and became the captain of a crew of pirates. He didn't necessarily wanted to become a pirate then, he just wanted to escape the curse of carrying the Montblanc family name. However, ten years ago before the current storyline, Cricket and his crew accidentally came across Jaya, the island that Norland supposedly found the city of gold and the island that so many of Cricket's family members failed in finding. Standing upon the cape where the city of gold was supposed to be, Cricket decided to accept his fate and find out once and for all if there was the legendary city that Norland found. His crew however, didn't agree with his decision and left him alone on the island. Left all alone, Cricket decided to live in a house near the cape and began diving all alone into the waters surrounding Jaya back and forth in his search for the city of gold. He didn't care if it existed or not, or to even proved Norland's innocence. He just decided then to continue doing so with the ambition that before he died, he would settle the matter once and for all.

Five or six years ago before the current storyline, two fans of the fairy tale then suddenly came to Jaya and proclaimed themselves Cricket's followers without his permission. These two fans, Masira and Shoujou, believed truly that the city of gold existed. Though they were loud and very much bothersome, Cricket allowed them to help him in his search and accepted them as his surrogate sons. To Cricket, their barging into his life out of the blue saved his life as the constant loneliness he felt before they came was unbearable. With this, Cricket became the leader of the Saruyama Alliance. Together with the two brothers and their pirate crews, Cricket had been searching all around Jaya for the lost city. They had since then found all sorts of clues such as golden bells and trinkets, remnants of the city.

The Straw Hats and the Hyena
While going out on one of his regular diving trips, Cricket came across Luffy as came up for air. Thinking he and the people with him were people trying to steal the gold he had found so far, Cricket pulled Luffy into the water. Cricket then pulled himself out and decided to defend his gold. Cricket was soon fighting with Sanji. In the midst of the battle, Cricket pulled out a gun and began firing at Sanji. However before the fight could escalate, Cricket succumbed to Decompression sickness and collapsed. He was then carried by the Straw Hats into his home and was taken cared by Chopper.

After recovering, thanked the Straw Hats for helping him and apologized for earlier. Cricket was then told that the Straw Hats had come to him in order to find a way up to Sky Island. Cricket merely at the mention of the idea since he himself didn't know if it existed or not. Cricket however explained that Norland, his ancestor, might know something of it. The moment the Straw Hats learned that he and Norland were related, Cricket explained his family's shame and his past. He then later explained to the Straw Hats the relationship he had with Masira and Shoujou. Luffy however, after listening to all this, asked Cricket again how to get to Sky Island. Seeing the determination in Luffy, Cricket took out Norland's log book and showed it to the Straw Hats. Within the log book, Cricket told them that evidences of a island in the sky were written there. Upon seeing the Straw Hats' excited expressions upon finding these pieces of information about Sky Island's existence, Cricket went out of his house and asked Masira and Shoujou if they should help the Straw Hats get to Sky Island. For this, they agreed. Everything seem well and good then, however, Usopp suspected that it was all too perfect. Usopp accused Cricket that he was lying and that he was actually planning something sinister for him and his compatriots. Cricket merely replied that he was just happy to have met people like the Straw Hats and just wanted to help. He then invited all the Straw Hats to his home for a party. Usopp, feeling down for his behavior, apologized to Cricket. Cricket however, was a bit disgusted by Usopp as he was rubbing his nose on the Cricket's pants while apologizing on his knees.

Cricket then began explaining to the Straw Hats where they could find Sky Island. There was cloud, he explained, that was so dense that it caused sunlight to be blocked from reaching the area below. Cricket wasn't exactly sure but he believed that's where Sky Island would most likely be. Cricket then continued to explain how to get to the cloud. He explained that the Straw Hats needed to use the Knock up Stream to get there. He however warned the Straw Hats that this journey to the cloud had to be precise and fast as the Knock up Stream was very dangerous and would only last for one minute. Fortunately, Cricket stated he knew when and where these two phenomenon would met up exactly. He also stated that Masira and Shoujou would also help reinforce and strengthen the Going Merry for the trip.

However, Bellamy the Hyena comes soon afterward and steals all of Cricket's hard earned artifacts that he found in the ocean. Luffy gets them back, however, and Cricket, Masira, and Shōjō modify the Going Merry so it can travel in the sky.

Near the end of the Skypiea arc, Cricket hears the ringing of the golden bell (courtesy of Luffy), proving that Skypiea and the gold city really do exist. Thanking the Straw Hats and relieved that they are all right in the sky, he, Masira, and Shōjō begin to think of a new dream to pursue.