Chapter - 14

  East Blue - Shells Town

  "Hey, Tangerine, are you still mad?", Luffy asks, grabbing and eating a pastry from the giant pile of ham and cheese rissoles he ordered a few moments ago.

  They had just arrived on the isnd, and Luffy had dragged them straight to a restaurant in town because he was starving.

  "Of course I'm mad! It was five million, Luffy, five million Berries that flew away because of your punch", Nami says irritably.

  "All the money we've gotten so far has been for you. It was just a bounty, and I already apologized, didn't I?", Luffy says.

  "It's just that I'm so close to saving up one hundred million Berries", Nami ments quietly, but they both still hear her say it.

  "Why are you so determined to gather one hundred million Berries anyway?", Coby asks, gncing at Luffy, impressed by the amount of food he's eaten so far.

  Coby becomes even more amazed when he sees Luffy calling a waitress to order more food.

  "I'm going to buy a certain vilge with that money", Nami replies, trying not to give too many details.

  Noticing that she wasn’t going to eborate, Luffy decides to change the subject. "Anyway, that Analvida was talking about someone named Roronoa Zoro. She said he was on this isnd, right?"

  Upon hearing Zoro's name, several people in the restaurant stand up in shock, knocking over some tables in the process.

  Luffy looks at the scene, confused, before returning to devour his food.

  "It's Alvida, not Analvida, and are you crazy, Luffy? That Zoro is locked up on this isnd for a reason. They say he's a bloodthirsty wild beast in human skin, a scary guy," Coby says, trying to make Luffy change his mind.

  "Rex, Gsses. If he's a good guy, I'll invite him to join my crew."

  "What part of 'bloodthirsty wild beast in human skin' didn't you get? Obviously, he's a bad guy if he's locked up. Besides, I saw on a poster that the base on this isnd is commanded by a man named Morgan, and he's highly decorated, so if you want to recruit Zoro, it'll be a tough task."

  At that moment, the same thing happens again, with several people standing up in fear, knocking over various tables in the process.

  =Scene Break=

  As the three of them head towards the Marine base, Coby starts talking, "That was really strange. I understand them being afraid of Zoro, but for them to react the same way at hearing Morgan's name..."

  "Remember what I told you, Gsses, not every Marine is good."

  Coby then lowers his head and remains thoughtful for the rest of the way.

  When they arrive at the Marine base, Luffy turns to Coby and says, "Well, this is where we part ways, Gsses. Be a good Marine."

  Luffy then pats Coby on the shoulder and begins moving towards the presence of a person alone in the middle of an open field that he sensed with his Haki.

  "Wait, where are you going, Luffy?", Coby asks, following Luffy.

  "I'm looking for this Zoro guy."

  "There's no way they'd leave him completely out in the open like that. He must be locked up in a well-protected cell inside the base", Coby says, trying to stop Luffy from climbing the wall, something he was already doing, with Nami following right behind.

  "Look at that guy", Luffy says, peering over the wall. Coby, who just finished climbing, falls immediately after getting a look at Zoro.

  "Hmm? What happened?", Luffy asks Coby, not understanding why he fell.

  "It's just that... that really is the real Roronoa Zoro", Coby then gets back up and climbs the wall again.

  Zoro then lifts his gaze and yells directly at the trio, "Hey, you three, get out of here! This isn't a zoo for people to come and gawk at me like I'm some animal."

  Suddenly, a dder is pced right next to Coby, and a little girl climbs up and stands beside him.

  "Hmm?", Luffy looks confused by the appearance of the little girl.

  "Hmm?", Nami looks on curiously as the events unfold.

  "Huh?", Coby is surprised by the appearance of the little girl, only to become concerned as he watches her start to jump over the wall to the other side. "Hey, wait, that's dangerous!"

  The little girl looks at Coby and motions for him to be quiet. "Shh."

  She then climbs down the wall and stands in front of Zoro, who says, "Hey, what are you doing here?"

  Coby, desperate, turns to Luffy and says, "Luffy, stop that kid. She's going to get herself killed."

  "You stop her. I’m not doing it."

  "Do you want to die? Get out of here", Zoro says, trying to scare the girl away.

  "Hmmm, I made onigiri. You must be starving, right, big brother?", the little girl says, showing him the onigiri she made.

  "This is my first time making them, but I did my best."

  "I'm not hungry", Zoro says, looking around to see if anyone is coming.

  "But—", the little girl starts to say, lowering her head sadly, only to be interrupted by Zoro yelling at her, "I DON'T WANT IT! GET OUT OF HERE, BRAT."

  Suddenly, an arrogant and spoiled voice fills the air, drawing everyone's attention to him. "No bullying, Roronoa Zoro, or I'll tell my Daddy."

  "Shishishi, look at that weird guy, Tangerine. He's got a butt chin and a ridiculous haircut", Luffy whispers to Nami beside him, who tries to stifle her ughter.

  "Tsk, the 'cocksucker' has arrived", Zoro mocks Helmeppo.

  "You think you're so tough, huh, grasshead? Just so you know, my Daddy is Captain Morgan, so show some respect", Helmeppo says, walking up to Zoro, accompanied by two Marines.

  He then stands in front of the little girl, grabs one of the onigiri she made, and says, "If he doesn't want it, I do. Hand it over."

  He immediately regrets it, spitting out everything he bit into while yelling at the little girl, compining about the taste. "This tastes awful! Why did you put sugar in it? Onigiri should be made with salt."

  "I thought it would taste better sweet", the little girl says, downcast.

  Helmeppo then throws all the onigiri she had prepared onto the ground and stomps on them with force.

  "That son of a bitch, that little girl worked so hard to make those", Coby says, indignant.

  Looking at the little girl kneeling and staring at the muddy mess her onigiri had become, Helmeppo says, "Don't worry, there's a better chance of someone liking them if the ants eat it."

  Helmeppo starts to get annoyed when he sees the little girl crying. He then turns to one of the Marines accompanying him and says, "Ah, that's why I hate brats. Hey, you, throw her over the wall."

  "But sir—"

  "I SAID THROW THAT BRAT OUT! ARE YOU DISOBEYING MY ORDER? DO YOU WANT ME TO TELL MY DADDY ABOUT THIS?", Helmeppo yells at the Marine, grabbing his colr.

  "Yes, right away", the Marine says, going to grab the little girl.

  On his way, he notices Luffy, Coby, and Nami on top of the wall. Luffy then nods at him, and realizing the girl wouldn’t get hurt, he feels more at ease.

  The little girl, who was thrown over the wall, is then caught by Luffy on the other side, immediately being comforted by Nami and Coby.

  After Helmeppo and the two Marines leave, with Helmeppo provoking Zoro a bit more, Luffy jumps over the wall and stands in front of Zoro.

  Noticing Luffy in front of him, Zoro says, "Huh? Are you still here? You better get out before the 'Daddy's Ball Licker' comes back."

  "Well, I'm looking for crew members to join my pirate crew", Luffy says, holding his straw hat.

  "Pirate? Ha! No thanks. I'm a pirate hunter. It's in the name, I hunt pirates. I haven't sunk low enough to consider becoming one", Zoro says, mocking the idea.

  "And what's wrong with wanting to be a pirate?"

  "Pirate Hunter, which part didn't you understand? Besides, don't tell me you're going to set me free if I join your crew?", Zoro says, emphasizing his profession.

  "Hmrram, you already said that. Anyway, I still haven't decided whether I'll free you or not, since you have a reputation for being a bad guy", Luffy says, not understanding why Zoro keeps repeating that he's a Pirate Hunter.

  Luffy said this to provoke Zoro for what he said earlier about becoming a pirate being a decision made by someone at rock bottom, as he had already decided long ago that he wanted him in his crew.

  "A bad guy, huh? Sorry, but regardless of your offer, I won't accept it. I made a deal with Butt Chin, if I survive for a month, I'll be released. That idiot promised me, and I don't need your help to survive."

  "Anyway, I'll survive and achieve my dream", Zoro says, looking into Luffy's eyes with unshakable determination.

  "What’s your dream?", Luffy asks, holding his hat.

  "I’m going to become the greatest swordsman in the world, and nothing will stand in my way."

  "Shishishi, I’ve decided, you’re joining my crew", Luffy says with a big grin.

  "Don’t decide things on your own, idiot", Zoro says, irritated at Luffy.

  "Anyway, see you in a bit. I just need to check on that little girl, then I’ll come back and set you free", Luffy says, turning to leave.

  "Hey, wait", Zoro calls out to Luffy suddenly.

  "Hmm?"

  "Can you give me that?", Zoro says, nodding toward the squashed rice balls on the ground.

  "Sure, here comes the airpne, open wide", Luffy jokes, pretending to feed a baby.

  Zoro then eats everything, embarrassed, and despite it clearly not tasting good, he says, “Tell the little brat, ‘Thank you very much for the food; it was delicious’.”

  "Shishishi, of course."

  =Scene Break=

  "Really?", The little girl, who they now knew was named Rika, asked Luffy while Nami petted her head.

  "Yeah, he ate it all and said it was delicious", Luffy says, sitting on a staircase.

  "I’m so happy", Rika says with a smile.

  "Is he really as bad as people say?", Coby asks.

  "Big Bro Zoro isn’t bad; the townspeople are just scared of him. But he didn’t do anything wrong. He was arrested because he killed Captain Morgan’s son’s wolf who was about to bite me. Captain Morgan’s son would let that wolf loose in the town all the time, and it would bite everyone."

  "The only bad people here are the Morgans. They kill anyone they think looked at them wrong, so everyone is afraid of them", Rika says, upset.

  At that moment, Helmeppo appears on the street and starts speaking loudly, "Bow down, or I’ll tell my daddy."

  Everyone in the street, except for Luffy and company, kneels and bows to Helmeppo.

  "You don’t want to be executed like Roronoa Zoro, right? Know that I’ll execute him in three days; let that be a lesson to you all."

  "Three days? What about your promise of a month?", Luffy asks, stepping in front of Helmeppo.

  "Hmm? Where’d you hear about that, and why didn’t you bow? Anyway, the promise was a lie, only a brainless idiot would believe that."

  Luffy then lightly punches him, causing Helmeppo’s face to sink into the ground due to the force of the blow.

  Helmeppo faints instantly, and when the two marines accompanying him try to attack Luffy, a light pulse of Conqueror’s Haki knock them out as well.

  Luffy turns to Nami and Coby and says, "I’m going to free Zoro", before heading back towards the base.

  "Alright, you’re definitely going to cause a ruckus, so I’ll use that distraction to sneak into the base and steal the Grand Line map they say is there", Nami says, following closely behind Luffy.

  "Hey, wait for me!", Coby shouts, running after them, not quite sure why he’s doing this but helping out anyway.

  ---

  (AN: 2,002 Words)

  ---

  Chapter - 15

  East Blue - Shells Town

  As soon as Zoro sees Luffy in front of him again, he says, "Look, man, I already told you I'm not joining your crew. I have more important things to do out there than pying pirate."

  "Hmm, I've already decided; you're part of my crew. And about being a pirate, I'm serious about it. I'm going to find the One Piece and become the Pirate King. Besides, I thought you'd like to know that the butt-chinned idiot lied to you. He's not going to keep his promise. He announced in town that your execution is going to happen in three days", Luffy says as he starts untying Zoro.

  "What the hell? That cum-guzzling son of a bitch... Hurghh... you know what, since they already consider me a criminal, instead of dying here in a pathetic way, why not accept this invitation and join your crew?"

  "Shishishi, my third crewmate, officially the second, but still, things are taking shape."

  "But know this, I'm going to become the world's greatest swordsman, and nothing will stand in my way of achieving that dream, not even you."

  "Shishishi, wonderful! Nothing less is expected from a crewmate of the future Pirate King. Besides, I'd be pretty embarrassed if you couldn't even keep up with me."

  "By the way, where's your sword? I don't think you can be a swordsman without a sword", Luffy asks, wondering if it's possible to be a swordsman without a sword.

  "It's with that idiot; they should be somewhere in this base", Zoro says, stretching a little.

  "Alright, I'm faster than you, so wait here while I search", Luffy says, starting to move toward the base.

  Despite wanting to go with him, Zoro decides to wait there. "I use three swords, just so you know."

  "Got it", Luffy says before disappearing after using Soru, leaving Zoro amazed at his speed.

  "I can't fall behind", Zoro murmurs, even more determined.

  =Scene Break=

  Nami pnned to infiltrate the base once Luffy caused a distraction, but she noticed that the base seemed almost completely deserted, with not a soul in sight. Not one to waste an opportunity, Nami easily sneaked into the base.

  After entering, she stole a marine uniform to move around the base more easily.

  She then found the archives room where they kept the maps. There, she discovered that the map of the Grand Line was securely stored in Captain Morgan's office.

  She made her way there, and after checking to ensure no one was inside, she broke the door open and hurriedly began searching for the map.

  After finding a hidden safe in the floor, she cracked it open, only to be unpleasantly surprised. Inside the safe, she found only a paper with a drawing of a clown flipping the bird with the caption, "Buggy was here and stole this map, idiots."

  "Urghh, damn clown", Nami fumed for a while, and to calm down, she decided to steal all the money from the base.

  And just as she had gathered all the money and was ready to leave, the base suddenly turned into chaos with armed marines running around everywhere.

  "Sigh... what did he do this time? The worst part is I can't even compin this time. I asked him to cause a distraction", she whispered quietly as she sneaked through the base, noticing that the floor was marked with footprints in several pces she passed. In the end, she arrived at the same field where Zoro was waiting, along with Coby, who had just arrived.

  =Scene Break=

  While Nami was infiltrating the base, the conversation between Luffy and Zoro was taking pce, and the moment she went to steal the base's money coincided with the moment Luffy went to retrieve Zoro's swords.

  Using his Observation Haki, Luffy sensed a rge number of people located at the top of the base. He then had the idea to ask if anyone there knew where the butt-chinned idiot's room was since he knew from his meta-knowledge that the swords would be there.

  So, using Geppo and Soru, he appeared directly on top of Captain Morgan's statue, nding on its shoulder and drawing the attention of everyone present.

  Looking closely at the statue he was standing on, Luffy said, "Wow, what an ugly statue", he then gave the statue a light tap, and it instantly crumbled into pieces.

  After nding, Luffy looked at the open-mouthed crowd in front of him and said, "Oops."

  "Anyway, does anyone know where the room of an idiot with a butt chin is?", Not receiving an answer because they were still stunned, Luffy decided to give more information. "He also has a ridiculous haircut... oh... and he's blonde."

  Seeing that no one was going to respond because they were in shock, Luffy muttered under his breath, "Well, looks like I'll have to go with the 'Sweet Dreams' style."

  Then, using Soru at maximum speed, he searched room by room for the idiot's room, leaving deep footprints wherever he passed. He even ended up passing by Nami, who was robbing the base, but she didn't notice him because he was in super speed using Soru.

  He soon found the idiot's room; it was completely pink, and filled with stuffed animals scattered around.

  In one corner of the room, he noticed three katanas leaning against the wall. After making sure they were the right swords, he grabbed them and started to leave the room, which was already surrounded by several marines aiming at the door.

  As soon as Luffy left the room, one of them shouted, "Don't move, hands up, and surrender peacefully."

  "Hmm, no thanks", Luffy said before continuing forward.

  Seeing that the intruder wasn't cooperating, they started shooting. Being shot at, Luffy dodged the bullets by dancing and doing a Moonwalk.

  Passing by all of them, Luffy waved with two fingers before jumping out of a window that faced the open field where Zoro and company were.

  While in the air, he saw Zoro, Nami, and Coby surrounded by marines who were about to shoot at them, led by a big guy with an ax hand.

  He then used Soru and Geppo to nd in front of them, catching all the bullets that were fired.

  "I'm here, guys. Did I miss anything?", Luffy said, opening his hands and letting all the bullets that had been fired fall.

  "You really could've avoided causing trouble, you know, Luffy? It would've been much simpler to get out of the base if there weren't a bunch of marines wandering around looking for you", Nami said, stressed, just wanting to compin.

  "Well, you asked me to cause a distraction, and I did. Sometimes you're so confusing, Tangerine. Anyway, Zoro, this is Tangerine, our navigator. Tangerine, this is Zoro, our new crewmate", Luffy said, completely ignoring all the marines in the area.

  "Sigh... I haven't joined your crew yet, Luffy", Nami said, starting to get used to his persistence.

  "Pay close attention to the word 'yet,' shishishi. The charm of the future Pirate King takes time, but it never fails. It won't be long before you officially join the crew."

  "Ugh, it's more like you win by wearing people down", Nami said, exasperated.

  "YOU ARE ALL UNDER ARREST AND SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR DEFYING THE AUTHORITY AND JUSTICE OF THE MARINES!", Morgan shouted, irritated at being ignored.

  "Justice?", Coby, who had been trembling with fear until that moment, seemed to have a sudden awakening and gained courage. "You call this justice? Abusing the innocent, oppressing the needy, killing people at your whim, imprisoning a man who simply saved an innocent child."

  "Nah, this isn't justice; this is abuse of authority and corruption. You're exactly the type of marine that disgusts me the most, the kind that rots this organization by sucking at the teat of power, doing whatever you want without facing any consequences. No, you're not a marine; you're a tyrant", Coby said, looking Morgan directly in the eyes.

  What Coby said surprised everyone with his courage, especially Nami and Luffy, who knew him better.

  "And you", Coby continued, looking at the marines, "too scared to oppose this tyrant, aren't you?"

  The surrounding marines averted their eyes in shame. "Yeah, you should be ashamed. How can you sleep knowing what this tyrant and his idiot son are doing?"

  "You know, my dream is to join the Marines, but I was still very naive and had a rude awakening. So this is now a decration: I'm going to join the Marines and show the world what a marine should be like. I'll practice true justice, not the manufactured justice of my superiors!"

  "Well said, Coby", Luffy said with a smile, and for the first time since they met, he used Coby's name instead of a nickname.

  "Your pce is in prison, criminal," Morgan said with disdain. "MEN, kill this brat."

  Seeing all his men hesitate and not carry out his orders, Morgan said, "Hesitating, are you? Very well, all those who hesitated, kill yourselves."

  And when the marines were about to point their guns at their own heads, they remembered what Coby had said, and instead of following Morgan's orders, they all pointed their weapons at Morgan.

  Then the highest-ranking marine present said, "Morgan, you're under arrest for abuse of power and corruption. Surrender peacefully."

  Boiling with rage, Morgan shouts, "YOU ARE DEFYING THE AUTHORITY OF THE MARINES AND SIDING WITH CRIMINALS. AS A MARINE CAPTAIN, I WILL BRING YOU TO JUSTICE—"

  He doesn't have time to finish his sentence because Luffy punches him in the face, smashing him into the ground with the residual force of the blow.

  "Yeah, it's nap time, Crimson Chin", Luffy says, dusting off his hands.

  After seeing Morgan fallen and defeated, all the marines cheer for the end of his tyranny.

  Meanwhile, Helmeppo loses all his privileges and now has to learn to live properly as a real marine instead of a fraud.

  The marines also seem not to have noticed that Nami stole from them.

  =Scene Break=

  After a big feast, the marines enter the bar, politely asking Luffy, Nami, and Zoro to leave the isnd since they are pirates. Luffy then turns to Coby and says, "Alright, this is where we part ways, Coby. You know what? I'll do you a favor."

  Luffy then runs to his boat, grabs his Den Den Mushi, and returns to the bar. When he arrives, he sits down again and calls his grandfather.

  "Pero... pero... kacha... who is it?"

  "Hey Grandpa, it's me, Luffy. Makino gave me your contact."

  "Oh, it's you, Luffy. Makino told me you were back; I was already on my way to get you to join the Marines."

  "Sorry, Grandpa, but there's no way I'm becoming a Marine. But I found the perfect kid to repce me. He's in Shells Town, has pink hair, wears gsses, and wants to be a good Marine. His name is Coby, by the way. Well, that's all I had to say. Bye, Grandpa, see you in the Grand Line", he then hangs up and turns to his companions, and says, "Alright, let's go, guys. I told my grandpa about you, Coby, so it's pretty likely he'll train you."

  After that, Nami, Zoro, and Luffy say goodbye to Coby and company and head to the next isnd, now searching for Buggy to get the Grand Line map.

  Meanwhile, in the bar, a marine comes running in, holding a Den Den Mushi. "Sir, Vice Admiral Garp is on the line", he says, passing the Den Den Mushi to his superior.

  Coby is then quite surprised that the Marine Hero Garp, the Fist, is Luffy's grandfather.

  "Urgh, that brat hung up on me. Are you in charge of this base?"

  "For now, yes, sir. Captain Morgan was detained for corruption and abuse of power after being defeated by the Straw Hat kid."

  "Alright, is the kid my grandson mentioned there?"

  "Yes, sir, he's here."

  "Give him the Den Den Mushi."

  He then hands the Den Den Mushi to Coby, who says, "H-hello, sir."

  "Why do you want to join the Marines, kid?"

  "I want to show the world what a Marine should be, sir. I want to protect the innocent, the weak, and the needy. I want to follow the justice that I believe to be true justice, not the justice imposed on me by my superiors", Coby says with conviction.

  "BWAHAHAHAHA, get ready, kid. As soon as I get there, your training begins. Hey, you guys, enlist this kid right now", Garp says before hanging up.

  ---

  (AN: 2,099 Words)

  ---

  Chapter - 16

  East Blue

  Somewhere in the middle of the sea

  “Wait, let me get this straight. We're after this guy named Boga who has the map we were going to steal, right?”, Luffy asks, trying to understand the situation.

  “His name is Buggy, but yes, that’s right”, Nami says while adjusting the sail.

  “But we don’t know where he is, do we?”

  “That’s right.”

  “So how are we supposed to find this Boga guy?”

  “It’s Buggy, Luffy, his name is Buggy.”

  “Yeah, Boga.”

  “Sigh... why do I even try?”, Nami says, giving up on correcting Luffy.

  “Well, to find that clown, we’re going to use the good old trick of gathering information.”

  “We’re going to stop at the next isnd to resupply, and while we’re at it, we’ll gather some intel too, and then we’ll set off.”

  “Works for me, Tangerine”, Luffy says, already covering his face with his hat, ready to take a nap.

  “What the Captain said”, Zoro says, sipping from a sake bottle.

  =Scene Break=

  When they arrive on the isnd, they start wandering around the town before buying the supplies they needed.

  More than once, Nami and Luffy had to correct Zoro’s path because he got lost while walking in a straight line.

  As they walked, they overheard a conversation between two marines.

  “What happened that you didn’t show up for the negotiation with that pirate Buggy yesterday?”, one of the marines asks.

  “I caught a terrible cold, only got better this morning. But how did the negotiation go? Did the Captain close the deal?”

  “The Captain closed the deal, but that damn Buggy had the nerve to send a subordinate instead of coming to negotiate personally.”

  “He must think he’s something special, huh? He knows the only reason he hasn’t been hunted down and arrested is because we’re covering for him, right?”

  “I don’t know, man. I’ve only heard rumors that he ate one of those legendary Akuma no Mi, and he must be pretty confident in the fruit’s power to think he doesn’t need to show up personally.”

  “And the Captain? What was his reaction to this disrespect?”

  “He didn’t show much at the time, but he was clearly pissed off.”

  “Not surprising. So that’s why the Captain didn’t come to the base today?”

  “Yeah, he said yesterday that he needed to cool off and decided to take a few days off.”

  After hearing enough of the conversation, Nami pulls her two companions into an alley and says, “Alright, it looks like we’ll need to interrogate this Captain to find out Buggy’s location.”

  “Why don’t we just interrogate those two? They seem to be involved in this scheme too”, Zoro suggests.

  “Because their information might be incomplete or wrong. It’s better to aim for the head of the operation so we can get more complete and accurate information.”

  “Okay, but don’t we just need the name of the isnd where this Buggy is?”, Zoro asks, trying to understand the reasoning.

  “Yeah, but who knows what other useful information we might get if we go after this Captain”, Nami says, already thinking of a pn.

  “Everything’s cool, guys. So we just need to find out where this Captain lives since he’s on leave, then we invade the pce and politely ask him everything he knows about this Boga, right?”, Luffy asks, feeling smart for thinking of this on his own.

  “It’s not that simple, cutie. Even though it’s not the Marine base on the isnd, it must be full of guards, and they might call for reinforcements from the base”, Nami says, stroking Luffy’s hair.

  “Rex, Tangerine, we’ll handle it”, Luffy says with a grin.

  “Still, I’d rather py it safe. So, Luffy, you cause a distraction at the Marine base to keep them occupied while Zoro and I invade the Captain’s house and interrogate him. Just do that thing where you knock people out with a gnce. Can you do that?”, Nami asks, expining her pn.

  “Sure thing. These marines are about to get my best Karen impression before I use Conqueror’s Haki”, Luffy says, his mind buzzing with ideas on how to cause chaos at the Marine base.

  “What’s Conqueror’s Haki?”, Zoro asks, intrigued.

  “I’ll expin ter”, Luffy says, noticing that both Zoro and Nami are interested.

  “Alright, the pn’s set. We just need to find out where this Captain lives, and then we can put it into action”, Nami says before they start heading out.

  An hour ter, they had already discovered where the Marine Captain lived and observed the activity around the house during that time.

  “Alright, now we just wait for nightfall and then we start”, Nami says, watching the activity at the house through binocurs.

  =Scene Break=

  The day had been quiet for this Marine base. Well, quiet until nightfall. At 8:00 PM, Luffy enters the base’s reception dressed as an elderly dy, complete with a hunched back.

  Moduting his vocal cords to make his voice sound like that of an irritating old woman, he repeatedly presses a bell and says, “This is outrageous, and I want to speak to the manager.”

  “Ma’am, this is a Marine base, not a commercial establishment. If you have a compint to make, just tell me, and I’ll direct you to someone who can resolve your issue,” a receptionist expins.

  Not paying a bit of attention to what the woman just said, Luffy continues his act, “I don’t care what you say, girl. I know my rights, and I want to speak to your boss. I have a compint and a demand to make.”

  “I’m afraid that won’t be possible, ma’am. The Captain in charge of this base is on leave today. If you tell me what the problem is, I can see if there’s a way to resolve it.”

  “Alright, girl, the problem is my neighbor. He makes noise all night, every night, and I can’t sleep properly. Every night he brings the same woman to his house, and they keep having sex all night long, and oh my god, how that woman moans and screams. The only reason I can think of for her moaning like that is my neighbor having a mile-long dick, and those are screams of pain because it’s hurting”, Luffy rambles without a shred of shame, unlike the receptionist, who was blushing with embarrassment.

  “Here’s the thing: I decided to put a stop to this nonsense, so I started investigating this woman and my neighbor to see if there was a way to make them stop making so much noise. In the end, I found out that the woman had a husband, and he was a marine, so I want to talk to your boss to get this marine fired. That way, maybe with him being home, that slut and my neighbor won’t bother me anymore”, Luffy says, giving the dumbest excuse he could think of.

  “Hmmm, I don’t... I’ll call the highest-ranking officer present at the base right now, and then you can deal with him.”

  “And make sure to call the cuckold too. I’ve got a few choice words for him. I think his name is Smith.”

  After a while, the receptionist returns with two men in tow.

  “Good evening, ma’am—”, one of the men greets Luffy, not knowing his name yet.

  “Ah, nice to meet you, my name’s Valesca”, Luffy introduces himself with a fake name.

  “Well, my name is Bruno, and I’m a Commander, and this is Lieutenant Commander Smith. I heard from our dear Cra here that you had some matters to discuss with us.”

  “I do, indeed, young Uno. I want you to fire this guy Smith. As I told this girl, this Smith’s wife keeps cheating on him with my neighbor, and they keep moaning really loudly every night, every day, and I can’t sleep because of it. So with him being fired and staying home, she won’t be able to come over to my neighbor’s to have wild sex”, by pure coincidence, there actually was a marine named Smith.

  Even more coincidentally, this marine also had a wife. “Wait, wait, is this old woman saying my wife is cheating on me? Impossible, she loves me.”

  “Calm down, Smith. I know it’s surprising to get this news, but that’s no reason to call this old woman an old woman”, Commander Bruno says, reprimanding him.

  “She might love you, but it doesn’t change the fact that she’s riding my neighbor’s dick.”

  “You know what, let’s clear this up. She’s arriving soon with my dinner. Let’s see what she has to say.”

  “Smith, are you sure you want to do this here? Wouldn’t it be better to do this in a more private pce?”, Commander Bruno says, trying to talk some sense into the man.

  “No, I’m fine with people knowing that I was cheated on. I want to clear this up now.”

  They then began to wait for the long-awaited arrival of the woman, and as time passed, everyone at the base showed up to witness the gossip firsthand. Apparently, someone spread the word.

  When she arrives, Smith doesn’t even give her time to ask what’s going on. “Are you cheating on me, Elena?”

  “What—”

  “You know what’s worse? I found out from your lover’s neighbor”, Smith says, interrupting her.

  “Wait, how does this old woman know, considering that Captain Jordan lives in a mansion without neighbors?”, she accidentally reveals, looking at Luffy.

  “Wait, you're cheating on me with the base captain?”, Smith says indignantly.

  Luffy then straightens up, letting his normal voice slip out instead of the moduted one, “Whoa, I didn’t see that coming. Actually, I didn’t expect a lot of things... who would’ve thought my made-up story would turn out to be real?”

  At that moment, a marine runs in shouting, “Captain Jordan’s house is under attack! They’ve requested reinforcements!”

  And the only thing anyone managed to say before a wave of Conqueror’s Haki knocked everyone out was, “What the hell?”

  “Well, I’d say I did a pretty good job”, Luffy says before heading to the agreed meeting point.

  =Scene Break=

  Meanwhile, Nami and Zoro had directly invaded the house without even trying to sneak in because Nami was sure Zoro would mess it up if they tried.

  After a bit of fighting with the guards, they reach the Captain, who attacks them as soon as he sees them.

  But again, this guy was on the same level as Morgan, so it was an easy fight for Zoro.

  After immobilizing him, Nami starts the interrogation, “Alright, let’s make this easy for both of us. We know about your deal with Buggy, so you’re going to tell us everything you have on him, got it?”

  “Screw you, girl. I’m not telling you anything.”

  “Wow, I didn’t know you were so loyal to a pirate”, Nami says, trying to provoke him into talking.

  Seeing that he started to reflect, Nami continued, “So, you’re saying your life is worth less than any information you have on a pirate.”

  “The hell with that, my life isn’t worth less! Fine, I’ll tell you.”

  “I knew we’d come to an understanding”, Nami says with a smile.

  “Buggy’s using Orange Town as his base, which is on one of the isnds here in the Organ Isnds archipego. He also ate an Akuma no Mi, the Bara Bara no Mi, and became a Chop-Chop human. He can split his body into pieces at will, making him immune to sshing attacks and stuff like that.”

  “That’s it?”, Nami asks, disappointed.

  “What more do you want? I might be doing business with Buggy, but he’s not that interesting to dig deeper.”

  “Great, so we went through all this trouble to get information that anyone else involved in this scheme could have given us”, Zoro says, mocking the useless effort they made.

  “Ugh, shut up, vomit hair”, Nami says, irritated.

  “Shut up yourself, red-haired witch”, Zoro retorts.

  They then knock out the Captain and head toward the meeting point they had agreed on earlier.

  When they arrive and spot Luffy already waiting, Nami runs over and hugs him tightly.

  “What’s this for, Tangerine?”, Luffy asks, hugging her back because he likes hugs, and hugs are always welcome.

  “Hugging my stress relief object”, Nami says, still holding him firmly.

  “Oh, okay. So, did you guys get what we wanted?”, Luffy asks, curious.

  “Well, it didn’t go exactly as we expected, but we did. Buggy is a few hours away, occupying an isnd in this archipego.”

  “Alright then, let’s set sail and go give this Boga a beating”, Luffy says excitedly.

  Since they had already bought everything they needed before all this trouble, they just set off toward Buggy's location.

  ---

  (AN: 2,120 Words)

  ---

  Chapter - 17

  East Blue

  At sea, a few hours away from Orange Town

  “So, you guys had asked about what Haki is, right?”, Luffy begins to speak, starting a conversation.

  “Yeah, what’s this Haki thing? And can people learn to use it?”, Zoro asks, intrigued.

  Interested in the topic, Nami splits her focus between steering the ship and listening to what Luffy has to say.

  “Well, there are three types of Haki. Of these three, only two can be learned by anyone”, Luffy starts his expnation.

  “The first two are Observation Haki, which allows a person to sense their surroundings through spiritual energy, enabling them to predict movements. It also has applications in medicine and navigation, like performing checkups and predicting the weather, for example. The other one is called Armament Haki, which allows people to use their spiritual energy to create armor around their body, boosting their attack and defense to incredible levels. With Armament Haki, you can inflict effective damage on people who, for example, ate Devil Fruits that make them immune to attacks”, Luffy says, coating his hand with Armament Haki to demonstrate.

  “And the third type of Haki?”, Nami asks.

  “Well, the third type is exclusive to a select group of people. You can’t learn this type of Haki through training; you’re simply born with it. Then you need to awaken it, and after that comes the training to use it in a controlled manner and make it stronger. I’m talking about Conqueror’s Haki, which basically allows the user to impose their willpower on others using spiritual energy. Additionally, all three types of Haki have advanced forms that are much stronger.”

  “So, basically, this power boils down to using spiritual energy, applying different intentions to generate different results?”, Nami asks, as perceptive as always.

  “Basically, yes. But the thing is, you first have to sense this energy to be able to use it, and the easiest way to do that is through the training that everyone goes through.”

  “And do you know how this training works?”, Zoro asks hopefully.

  “Well, I learned Haki in a slightly different way, but yes, I do. In fact, I have these manuals that expin the step-by-step training and the applications used. One is about the three Haki, and the other is about Rokushiki. If you want to learn, I recommend focusing a bit more on Rokushiki for now”, Luffy expins, showing the two booklets he carries with him.

  “And what’s Rokushiki?”, Nami asks, reflecting on whether these things could help her defeat Arlong.

  “It’s a martial art of the Navy. Remember how I moved so fast it looked like I was teleporting?”

  “Yeah, isn’t it just that you’re much faster than us?”, Zoro asks.

  “Well, there’s that too, but I was also using one of the Rokushiki techniques called Soru. You kick the ground at least ten times in the blink of an eye to take a step, giving you tremendous speed. If you want, we can start training now, both Haki and Rokushiki. We still have a few hours to go anyway.”

  “Fine by me”, Zoro says, with Nami agreeing because she also wants to get stronger, not denying the possibility of dealing with Arlong in another way.

  After an hour of helping the two with Observation Haki training, a panting Nami with her body aching from being hit repeatedly while blindfolded, compins, “Why does it have to hurt so much?”

  “No pain, no gain, baby. Now let’s move on to physical training. You’re ridiculously weak, and the body is the foundation for everything, so your physiques need to get stronger if you want to learn these things I talked about. Come on, get up, the rest break is over, let’s go, let’s go”, Luffy says, forcing them to stand up. Zoro was in better shape than Nami, but he was still a bit tired.

  If they thought that one hour of training was exhausting, they were in for a rude awakening because Luffy, even though he couldn’t make them run or lift heavy weights due to being on a ship with limited space, made sure to push their bodies far beyond their limits in just three hours.

  In the end, the two couldn’t move from the floor, so exhausted and sore that they were.

  “Well, I think that’s enough for now. You guys did well despite us not having many resources avaible at the moment”, Luffy says, hands on his hips, watching his friends try to sit up.

  He then spent the next few hours talking with them, giving Zoro tips, such as telling him he needed to hear the breath of all things after learning that he still didn’t know how to do that. This way, he could cut what he wanted and not cut what he didn’t want to.

  “My master told me something simir in the past. When you want to cut something, the sword cuts even the thickest steel. But when you don’t want to cut something, the sword doesn’t cut even the thinnest paper. Is that right?”, Zoro asks, intrigued.

  “Yes, that’s right. You need to feel the breath of things, then you’ll be able to cut or not cut whatever you want. That’s the next step as a swordsman for you”, Luffy says, pointing out the things he needed to focus on first.

  In addition to guiding and giving tips to Zoro, Luffy also, at Nami’s request, gave her a massage, relieving her sore muscles. And although Zoro also wanted a massage, his pride and embarrassment prevented him from asking for one.

  And so they spent the time before arriving at Orange Town. As soon as they docked the ship at the town’s port, they observed a plume of smoke rising into the sky in the distance, with tall fmes visible from afar, dancing in the wind.

  Using Observation Haki, Luffy detected two vital signs in front of the fire and two more vital signs at a good distance, moving away from the area.

  Curious, Luffy headed towards the location with Nami and Zoro following him, with Zoro getting lost along the way and separating from the group.

  When the two arrived at the site, they were met with the sight of a small white dog, beaten up, staring intently at a burning building. Beside him was an elderly man holding a spear and wearing pieces of armor for protection.

  ‘Am I too te?’, Luffy thinks, clenching his jaw in frustration.

  “Hey, old man, what happened here? Why is this little dog all beaten up?”, Nami asks, observing the scene.

  “I’m Boodle, and this is Chouchou. The building on fire was a pet shop owned by a friend of mine. He and Chouchou opened this store about ten years ago. This pce was a treasure trove of memories for them and for me too. Unfortunately, my friend passed away some time ago due to an illness. Chouchou has been taking care of the store ever since. About a month ago, these pirates showed up and besieged the town, forcing the citizens to evacuate to another part of the isnd for safety. Chouchou has been regurly defending the store from pirates, but this time he couldn’t stop them. They stole what they wanted and set fire to the rest”, Mayor Boodle says, clenching his jaw as he speaks.

  Throughout the expnation, Luffy remained silent, looking at Chouchou with his straw hat covering his eyes from view.

  “Poor thing, he’s been taking care of the store all this time, waiting for his owner to come back, and those bastards did this”, Nami ments, the difference between a regur pirate and Luffy becoming increasingly clear to her.

  “No, you’re mistaken. He’s not waiting for his owner to come back. Chouchou is very smart; he knows that the owner is no longer with us. Like I said before, this store holds many precious memories for him. It was his treasure”, Luffy says, his voice faltering slightly at the end.

  Without saying anything further, Luffy begins to move in the direction where he had previously sensed the two vital signs moving away from this pce.

  “Hey Luffy, where are you going?”, Nami asks, but receives no answer as her companion walks away.

  Now alone, Luffy finds himself facing a huge lion carrying a guy with a ridiculous haircut on its back.

  “Who are you, brat? Get out of the way, I’m not in the mood today. That damn dog still managed to bite me”, Mohji says, still irritated with the annoying little dog from earlier.

  Noticing the bag of dog food in the lion’s mouth, Luffy asks, with his straw hat covering his eyes, “You were the ones who set fire to Chouchou’s treasure, weren’t you?”

  “What? What the hell are you talking about, brat? Get out of the way, or I’ll kill you. Got it?”

  “Nah, I’m not in the mood. Instead, I’m going to beat the crap out of you for what you did”, Luffy says, starting to walk towards them.

  “Richie, kill this punk”, Mohji says, pointing at Luffy.

  Richie then charges at Luffy like a raging beast, thirsting for blood, only to have his head driven deep into the ground by a punch from Luffy, who made sure not to hold back as much as he usually does when fighting really weak opponents.

  To give you an idea of how much he didn’t hold back with that punch, the impact of Richie colliding with the ground created a very deep crater the size of a city block.

  The result was a lion lying destroyed in the middle of the crater, but he was probably still alive, I think, well, he was in bad shape, but alive. Whether he’d be able to walk in the future or if he’d have some kind of brain damage, well, that's not my problem, and Luffy couldn't care less either.

  Meanwhile, Mohji, the lion's owner, had been thrown into the air by the collision of Richie's head with Luffy's fist.

  Just before he hit the ground, he was grabbed by the colr by Luffy, who now held him up with one hand.

  "I'M SORRY, FOR WHATEVER I DID, JUST DON'T KILL ME", Mohji pleaded with Luffy.

  "Nah, apologies won't bring back Chouchou's treasure but don't worry, I’m not going to kill you. You're no use to me dead, but I'm going to make sure you live with something to remind you of what you did", Luffy said, now grabbing him by the hair.

  Suddenly, Luffy smmed his face into the ground, further enrging the existing crater. In the process, he ripped out all the hair he was holding, leaving Mohji bald, perhaps forever.

  Luffy then grabbed the bag of dog food the lion had been carrying and returned to the pce where Chouchou, Nami, and Boodle were.

  Arriving there, he pced the bag of dog food in front of Chouchou, sat down next to him, and said, "This was all I could recover. You’re strong. I mean, I didn't see the fight, but I'm sure you were incredible", he then paused, looking at the now extinguished ruins of the building. "You know, it's not the building itself that's your treasure; it's the memories, right?"

  As he said this, Chouchou shifted his gaze from the ruins and looked at Luffy intently.

  "I mean, this is where you made precious memories, but just because the pet shop was destroyed doesn't mean those memories are gone too. No, they're still very much alive, here and here", Luffy said, pointing to his heart and then his head.

  "You know, when do you think someone dies? When they die from some illness, or maybe when they get shot, or maybe when their body turns to dust? No, none of those answers are correct. A person truly dies when they're forgotten," Luffy said to Chouchou, though it wasn’t just him listening intently, Nami, standing beside them, was already crying as memories of her deceased mother flooded her mind.

  "I loved him. This pce was all I had left. It was the only thing he left behind. This pet shop was the greatest pride of his life, and I had promised to protect it, and now it's gone, everything is gone", Chouchou said, tears streaming down his face as he stared at Luffy.

  "Nah, I'm sure the greatest pride of his life wasn't the pet shop; it was you. And you seem very much alive to me. If you want to reunite with your owner in heaven and be able to look him in the eyes with pride, then live. Live to the fullest, with no regrets. That way, when you meet him again in heaven, my friend, you'll have many stories and adventures to share with him, and I'm sure he'll love them", Luffy said, gently stroking Chouchou's head.

  Chouchou sniffled a little before getting up and taking the bag of dog food to leave, but not before asking, "What's your name?"

  "My name is Monkey D. Luffy, and I'm going to become the King of the Pirates."

  "Hauauauauau, thanks for everything, Luffy, and you're pretty strong too", Chouchou said before leaving.

  ---

  (AN: 2,198 Words)

  ---

  Chapter - 18

  East Blue – Organ Isnds

  Orange Town

  “That was cool, what you said, Luffy”, Nami says, approaching Luffy, still crying.

  “Huh, why are you crying, Tangerine?”, He looks around and says, “Tell me who made you cry, and I’ll beat up that idiot.”

  “No one made me cry, Luffy”, Nami says, wiping away her tears with a small smile on her face.

  “Where is he? I’ll beat the crap out of this 'No One'”, Luffy says, cracking his knuckles.

  “I’m not crying, Luffy”, Nami says, her smile growing because of his silliness.

  “Huh, so what’s happening to your eyes?”, Luffy asks, confused.

  “They’re just watering”, Nami says, trying to change the subject.

  “Ohh, that makes sense now”, Luffy says as if he’s solved a mystery.

  “By the way, where’s Zoro?”, Luffy asks, changing the subject.

  “Wasn’t he with us?”, she asks, looking around.

  “I don’t think so.”

  “...Sigh... How does that guy manage to get lost so easily? I swear to God, he could get lost walking in a straight line”, Nami says, rubbing her forehead.

  “Shishishi, true, I bet he could get lost and end up on the moon by accident.”

  “Yeah.”

  “This chat’s nice, but let’s go beat up Boga”, Luffy says, cracking his knuckles with a grin. He then turns to Mayor Boodle and says, “Bye, old man, take care of yourself.”

  “Goodbye, I’m going to check on Chouchou”, Boodle says before leaving.

  “Alright, Tangerine, while I’m beating up Boga, you grab the map and steal whatever you want, then we’ll look for Zoro afterward”, Luffy says before heading toward the town’s center, where he sensed many presences gathered in one pce. Coincidentally, he also felt Zoro’s presence nearby.

  “Alright, the map and treasure should be on his ship, but where did they dock?”, Nami asks before Luffy can walk too far.

  “Eh, I feel some presence coming from that direction by the isnd’s coast, probably a port.”

  “Is it a lot of people?”

  “No, just about six”, Luffy says, shaking his head.

  “Alright then, after you fight Buggy, find Zoro with your Haki and meet me at our ship in the port, okay?”, Nami asks, coordinating their pns.

  “Okay, take care, Tangerine, and knock out anyone who gets in your way.”

  “Will do.”

  The two then go their separate ways. Luffy reaches the pce where he feels the gathered presence, which turns out to be a bar.

  Luffy enters without a care and heads straight for the stairs to go up to the rooftop, where the strongest presence he sensed was.

  Naturally, his actions catch the attention of all the pirates filling the pce. They follow him, curious to see how things will unfold, already predicting that this idiot will be killed.

  When Luffy reaches the rooftop, he sees Buggy lounging on a throne, resting his chin on his fist.

  “Sir, this brat just barged in and came straight up here”, one of the pirates informs his Captain.

  “Wow, what a huge nose! How many tons of air do you breathe per day? Is it naturally red, or do you have to paint it all the time?”, Luffy asks, impressed by Buggy’s big nose.

  “Who do you think you are to talk about my nose, you little brat? You’re in the presence of Lord Buggy, the Star Clown, show some respect, or I’ll kill you... sigh... You’re lucky I’m in a good mood today”, Buggy says, irritated but trying to calm down, remembering that he finally has the Grand Line map he’s wanted for a while.

  The map was safely stored on his ship along with the rest of his treasure, and he thought that just being on his ship was security enough because, let’s face it, who would be stupid enough to try to steal from him?

  “Rex, Boga, I was just curious about that titanic, ugly thing you call a nose”, Luffy says, noticing that Buggy is a bit annoyed.

  “Buggy, my name is Buggy, you little punk, urghh, you know what, you’ve completely ruined my mood. Men, kill this kid!”, Buggy says, practically foaming at the mouth from rage.

  The pirates can’t get close because Zoro suddenly appears, slicing through them.

  “Captain, do you know how long I’ve been looking for you two? By the way, where’s that witch?”, Zoro says, dodging an attack and cutting down the attacker right after.

  “Oh, Tangerine’s stealing the map from this big-nose while we’re talking”, Luffy says nonchantly amid the chaos, pointing at Buggy.

  “Whatttttt? Men, quickly, go protect the ship before these idiots succeed”, Buggy says, panicking, never imagining someone would actually dare to steal from him.

  “Rex, Luffy, take care of this big-nose, I’ll handle the rest”, Zoro says, standing in front of Buggy’s entire pirate crew.

  Giving a thumbs-up to Zoro, Luffy turns to Buggy and says, cracking his knuckles, “Alright, ready to get beaten up, Boga?”

  “Buggy! The name’s Buggy! MY NAME IS BUGGY, DAMN IT!”, Buggy shouts, furious at Luffy’s disrespect.

  “...Sigh... And why exactly do you want to fight me? You and your friends could’ve just stolen the map and run away, and I wouldn’t have even noticed if you were fast enough.”

  “You and your men are destroying this town, and I don’t like you, so I felt like beating you up.”

  “That’s it? You want to beat me up because you felt like it? Gyahahahahaha, that... that’s the dumbest excuse I’ve ever heard in my life.”

  “People have been beaten up for less, but alright, Air-Sucker, are we gonna fight or what?”, Luffy says, adjusting his hat on his head.

  At that moment, Buggy notices Luffy’s straw hat and says, “Strange, that hat looks familiar. It looks like the one that damn Red-Haired guy used to wear.”

  “Red-Haired? Are you talking about Shanks?”, Luffy asks.

  Meanwhile, Zoro easily defeats Buggy’s pirates, now facing Cabaji, though “facing” is a strong word since, well, it takes less than two seconds for him to be defeated.

  “How does a kid like you know that damn Red-Haired guy?”

  “Shanks stayed on my isnd when I was younger. He gave me this hat; it’s my greatest treasure. I promised to return it to him when I became a great pirate”, Luffy says, holding his hat with a smile.

  “Ehhh? That crappy hat is your greatest treasure? Are you serious? Gyahahahahaha, treasure is gold, jewels, that’s a real treasure, not some stupid straw hat”, Buggy says, ughing hysterically.

  “Shishishishi, you know, you’re not helping yourself. I’m getting more and more eager to beat you up”, Luffy says, not pnning to drag things out.

  “You insolent brat! Do you really think you can defeat—”, Buggy doesn’t get to finish his sentence because he’s sent flying like a rocket by a punch from Luffy covered in Armament Haki.

  “Is this guy serious? He sailed the New World in Roger’s crew and was still too weak to defend himself from such a simple punch?”, Luffy murmurs to himself, impressed by how weak Buggy was.

  Looking around, Luffy sees that Zoro has already finished off all the pirates. He takes the opportunity to gather some Buggy Balls, thinking maybe Usopp could reverse-engineer them in the future. He then turns to Zoro and says, “Alright, let’s head back to the ship. Tangerine was going to meet us there.”

  They head back to the ship and find Nami already waiting for them with two rge sacks full of treasure by her side.

  “Finally, you guys are here. Come on, help me carry these sacks onto the ship. By the way, I got the map”, Nami says as she boards the ship. She could have tricked them, stolen the map and the ship, and sailed off alone, but for some reason only she could expin, she didn’t.

  As Luffy picks up one of the sacks, a crowd of citizens appears, led by Chouchou and Boodle.

  “Hey, old man, I already beat up Boga, so you don’t need to worry. He won’t be a problem anymore.”

  “Yeah, I saw, kid. Me and the folks who came to look for me, because I was taking too long to return, had gone to help you guys, but by the time we arrived, the pirates were already fleeing with their tails between their legs”, Boodle says with a smile.

  “Shishishi, no need to worry. I’m really strong.”

  “Thank you for everything, kid, really.”

  “Nah, no problem. Oh, and don’t tell Tangerine about this. Here, you’ll need it to rebuild the town”, Luffy says, whispering the st part as he hands the sack of treasure to Boodle.

  Chouchou then stands in front of Luffy and says, “Hey Luffy, is there any room in your crew?”

  "Shishishishi, there is, but first, what's your dream, Chouchou?", Luffy asks with a big smile on his face.

  "Someone once told me to make my life worthwhile so that I could face someone dear to me when I die. I want to live my life to the fullest, that's my dream", Chouchou says, looking directly into Luffy's eyes.

  "Shishishi, what are you waiting for? Get on the ship, our adventures are going to be wild", Luffy says, holding his hat and ughing while imagining the craziness awaiting them in the future.

  "Take good care of Chouchou", Boodle says with a smile on his face.

  "Don't worry, old man", Luffy replies with a grin.

  As soon as Nami sees Chouchou on the ship, she asks while petting him, "Huh, what's Chouchou doing on the ship?"

  "Who's this little dog?", Zoro asks, confused.

  "Guys, this is Chouchou, our newest crew member", Luffy says, introducing the dog.

  "You didn't kidnap him, did you, Luffy?", Nami asks, concerned.

  "No, he joined the crew on his own", Luffy says, standing with his hands on his hips.

  Nami then crouches in front of Chouchou and says, "So you decided to become a pirate, huh, little guy? I think you and Luffy are the only pirates I like", she whispers the st part so no one else can hear.

  "This crew just keeps getting weirder", Zoro says with a smile before falling asleep.

  ---

  (AN: 1,683 Words)

  ---

  Chapter - 19

  East Blue

  Somewhere in the middle of the sea

  "You're telling me you left behind one of the treasure bags I stole? WHY DID YOU DO THAT, YOU MORON?", Nami asks angrily, shaking Luffy.

  "Rex, Tangerine. They need that money more than we do. It'll be a big help when they rebuild the town. But if you really want that money, we can turn around, and you can get it back", Luffy suggests with a smile.

  "No, that's not necessary, just... just let me know next time you want to do something like this, and we'll decide together", Nami says, not wanting to py the vilin.

  "Oh, I get it! I thought you just wanted the money back, but actually, you wanted to be part of the good deed too", Luffy deduces, feeling quite clever.

  Agreeing with their captain, Chouchou rubs against Nami's leg, thanking her for the generosity toward his hometown.

  "Yeah... yeah, that's it... I just wanted to be part of the good deed", Nami says, impressed by how off-track Luffy's logic can go.

  'The more time passes, the more amazed I am by how clueless this guy is. But I guess that's part of his charm', Nami reflects silently.

  Sometime ter, Luffy, seeing Chouchou all bandaged up, decides to call a meeting.

  "Alright, crew, now that we have four members and a pending invitation," he says, gncing at Nami before continuing, "it's time to start your real training. Zoro and Tangerine have already started, and Chouchou will start now. From today, you'll train under my instruction every day, and you'll only rest when I say so. Everyone agrees?"

  "Fine by me", Zoro says, eager to get stronger.

  "Same here, but shouldn't we wait for Chouchou to recover from his injuries?", Nami asks, a little concerned.

  At that moment, Chouchou barks, saying, "Don't worry, Nami, I'm strong, I can handle it, Cap."

  "Shishishi, rex, Tangerine. I have a solution for that", Luffy says, opening a box and pulling out an Akuma no Mi.

  "This is the Inu Inu no Mi – Model: Fenrir. It's a Mythical Zoan, which lets whoever eats it transform into the mythical wolf Fenrir, known as the God Syer. It grants enhanced regeneration, a huge boost in strength, durability, and endurance, and, obviously, the ability to transform into a giant 20-meter-tall wolf. But don't rely too much on the regeneration; the st user was tough to defeat because of it, but in the end, they were still killed by a shot to the head. So, it's not infallible... at least, not yet."

  "I'm telling you this to expin what this fruit is, Chouchou. If you want to eat it, now's the time to decide. It's an Akuma no Mi, so it has that whole weakness to seawater thing, but we can work on that with training. So, what do you say?"

  Chouchou barks again, saying, "If this makes me stronger so I can experience more adventures with my friends, then bring it on."

  "Shishishi, alright, here you go", Luffy says, pcing the fruit in front of Chouchou, who devours it completely despite the terrible taste.

  "Just don’t transform on the ship, or we'll end up sinking. Your half-form is already big, and your full form is gigantic, so you won’t fit on this boat", Luffy warns him.

  As Chouchou feels better, his wounds slowly healing, Nami comments, "Speaking of space, this ship's already too cramped, especially with all these instruments just taking up room."

  "Hey, a pirate crew is nothing without music! When we find a musician, these instruments will be very useful", Luffy says, pouting.

  "But you're right about one thing: it's getting tight here. What's the next isnd we're heading to, Tangerine?", Luffy asks, thinking of a solution.

  "We're headed to Syrup Vilge on Gecko Isnds. It'll take several days to get there. Why?", Nami asks, petting Chouchou.

  "When we get there, we'll buy a bigger ship, if they have one for sale", Luffy says.

  "Well, it's unlikely they'll have a ship for sale, but it doesn't hurt to try, right?", Nami says, shrugging, used to Luffy's odd logic where, even when things seem impossible, they somehow always happen the way he says.

  "Exactly! You're getting the hang of it, Tangerine. But enough talk, it's time to train."

  "Train? Zoro and I already trained today," Nami points out, gesturing to herself and Zoro.

  "You're calling those four hours of training? No way. I trained twelve hours a day without stopping to get this strong, so you’d better work hard unless you want to fall behind. Plus, it's Chouchou's first day of training. You're not going to leave him to train alone, are you?"

  Zoro didn’t mind continuing, but Nami only agreed after seeing the puppy-dog eyes Chouchou gave her.

  "Good work, buddy", Luffy says, giving Chouchou a low-five, the little dog ughing like Muttley.

  After that, Luffy spent another six hours training the three of them, pushing their bodies far beyond their limits.

  During their free time, they pyed cards, and chatted about whatever came to mind, or Luffy would grab a guitar and start singing, with everyone eventually joining in.

  After a week of this routine, Nami had grown much stronger than before, able to use Observation Haki, not 100% of the time, but still managing it. She also had retive success with the Rokushiki technique Soru, managing to kick the ground five times in an instant.

  Zoro saw a huge boost in his strength and was now able to use Armament Haki, though not fully mastered either. With Rokushiki, he could use Soru perfectly and was working to refine it, just like Luffy. Additionally, Zoro felt he was close to hearing the breath of all things.

  Thanks to his Akuma no Mi, Chouchou had experienced the most physical growth of the three, nearing Zoro’s current strength. He had also mastered Soru like Zoro and was working on his Observation Haki.

  Seeing Chouchou’s rapid progress, Zoro put even more effort into his own training, not wanting to be outdone.

  With two days left before reaching Syrup Vilge, Luffy spotted an isnd in the distance, which Nami identified as uninhabited.

  Despite Nami's compints that it made no sense to stop there, Luffy decided to explore the isnd.

  When they arrived, Nami, Luffy, and Chouchou set off to explore, while Zoro stayed on the ship, sleeping.

  As they walked through the forest, they heard a voice trying to sound ethereal and mysterious: "You're not welcome here. Leave."

  Using Observation Haki, Luffy turned to face the source of the voice. "Look, Tangerine, an old man in a treasure chest", he said, pointing to a man trapped inside a treasure chest.

  The man tried to run away but tripped and fell, unable to get up.

  Chouchou circled the man, sniffing him before wrinkling his nose at the unpleasant smell.

  "Instead of sniffing me, you could at least help me up."

  "Was he born like this, Tangerine?", Luffy asked, curious.

  "I don't know, Luffy. Why don't you ask him?", Nami replied, helping the man to his feet.

  "Yes, my chest parents raised me since I was a little box... ARE YOU STUPID?", the man said sarcastically.

  "I’VE BEEN STUCK IN THIS CHEST FOR TWENTY YEARS ON THIS ISLAND. DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT I'VE BEEN THROUGH?"

  "Wow, how did you survive for twenty years inside a chest?", Nami asked, impressed.

  "Dude, you'd have to be pretty dumb to get yourself into this situation", Luffy said, ughing in the man’s face.

  "Do you want to die, kid?", the man asked, slightly irritated.

  "What's your name, old man?", Luffy asked curiously.

  "My name is Gaimon. I'm the guardian of this isnd."

  "If you want, I can get you out of that chest", Luffy offered.

  "Unfortunately, I can't accept that offer. My body and this chest have become one. If you take me out, my body will fall apart."

  "So, why did you stop on this isnd?", Gaimon asked, curious.

  "To explore. After this, we're stopping at a few more pces and then heading straight to the Grand Line to look for the One Piece", Luffy said excitedly.

  "What? You're after the One Piece? Do you even have a map?"

  "We’ve got a navigation map for the Grand Line", Luffy said, showing the map to Gaimon.

  "Which part of this is the Grand Line?", Gaimon asked, looking at the map.

  "You don’t know how to read a map, old man?", Luffy asked, curious.

  "I was never good at reading maps."

  "Uh-oh, then we’re in trouble 'cause I know even less", Luffy said, and the two of them started ughing together.

  Chouchou joined in, ughing with his signature Muttley-like snicker.

  Nami then briefly expined the world’s geography to the three of them.

  "That’s weird, the world’s geography seems maniputed", Luffy said, scratching his chin.

  "What do you mean, Luffy?", Nami asked, becoming curious.

  "Like, it's kind of impossible for the world to be perfectly divided in half vertically by a strip of nd and horizontally by a strip of sea, surrounded parallelly by two strips of completely calm, windless seas, splitting the world into four oceans. That's why I think the geography of the world is maniputed", Luffy expined his theory with enthusiasm.

  "I thought you said you didn't know how to read maps", Gaimon said, raising an eyebrow.

  Chouchou, still a bit tired from the day's training, y down at Luffy's feet, who started to pet him.

  "And I don't. It's just that I like creating theories and solving mysteries", Luffy said, closing the map and handing it back to Nami.

  "Now that you mention it, I can't help but think the world's geography really does seem synthetic and not natural", Nami said, theorizing answers in her mind, eager to solve the mystery.

  Gaimon then expined to them the horrors of the Grand Line, saying that the One Piece was nothing more than a dream within a dream.

  "Don't worry, old man, I'll find the One Piece. Besides, I'm lucky, so there's no need to worry", Luffy said with a smile.

  Chouchou barked a few times, agreeing with Luffy.

  "By the way, do you want us to take you off this isnd and to an inhabited one?", Nami asked, offering Gaimon a ride.

  "...Sigh... I can't leave this isnd. Twenty years ago, I was a pirate. Our crew had come to this isnd in search of treasure, but we found nothing. As we were preparing to leave, I decided to check a high pce we hadn't seen before. Up there, I found several chests, but I slipped and fell, passed out, and when I woke up, I was already stuck in this chest. I found out my crew had left, and since I couldn't climb up there, I've been guarding this treasure for the st twenty years."

  "Whoa, do you want us to get the treasure for you?", Luffy asked.

  "If you can, I'd appreciate it."

  "Alright, let's help the old man", Nami said. She then saw Luffy looking at her strangely and said, "What? I'm not going to steal from him; I have my principles."

  They went to the location where Luffy quickly jumped to the top and said, "Yeah, there are about five chests up here."

  "Alright, Luffy, bring them down here", Nami said, already eager for the treasure.

  "I can't", Luffy said, sitting on the edge of the pce.

  "What do you mean you can't? Stop messing around and bring those chests down", Nami said, starting to get angry.

  "It's alright, there's nothing inside them, right Straw Hat?", Gaimon asked, starting to tear up.

  "That's right."

  Chouchou rubbed against Gaimon, trying to comfort him.

  "It's okay, I had thought about that possibility many times. I just really needed to know."

  "Look on the bright side, old man, you lived long enough to see whether or not there was treasure", Luffy said, trying to cheer him up.

  =Scene Break=

  "Are you sure you don't want a ride?", Nami asked Gaimon, still offering him a ride.

  "Nah, I'm still the guardian of this isnd, and I've grown attached to the animals here, so I'll protect them from now on. But it's good to know there's no treasure; I feel relieved in a way", Gaimon said with a smile.

  "Well, goodbye then, old man", Luffy said with a grin.

  Chouchou also said goodbye to Gaimon in what sounded like a bark.

  They set off once again, this time towards Syrup Vilge.

  And while all of this was happening, Zoro still slept peacefully, showing no signs of waking anytime soon.

  ---

  (AN: 2,100 Words)

  ---

  Chapter - 20

  East Blue

  Somewhere in the middle of the sea

  Over the past two days of their journey to Syrup Vilge, besides intensifying his training even more, now training for twelve hours straight, Zoro made even more progress. He had now mastered the basics of Armament Haki, could kick the ground fifteen times with each step when using Soru, and could finally hear the breath of all things at will.

  Meanwhile, Nami had mastered the basics of Observation Haki and was studying how to apply it to navigation. She had also mastered the basics of Soru and had pns to improve the technique.

  At the moment, Chouchou could kick the ground twelve times per step when using Soru, and his Observation Haki training was progressing steadily.

  =Scene Break=

  Finally, they spotted Syrup Vilge in the distance. They approached and docked the ship on the southern coast of the isnd without any trouble.

  The four of them disembarked and walked for a bit until they stopped at the foot of a hill as several pirate fgs appeared from behind the bushes and trees, fluttering in the wind.

  Then, a boy with a long nose and curly hair appeared in the middle of it all, pointing a loaded slingshot at Luffy and his crew.

  "Stop, or I’ll shoot! Are you pirates?", the boy yelled.

  "Yes, we’re pirates. My name is Luffy. What’s yours?", Luffy asked, already knowing the boy was Usopp.

  "I’m the amazing, spectacur, and majestic pirate Captain Usopp, also known by my enemies as ‘God Usopp’, so I advise you not to dare attack this vilge, or my two hundred million heavily armed soldiers will ruthlessly attack you!", Usopp said, still pointing the slingshot at them and hoping they wouldn’t notice his shaky legs.

  "You do realize this isnd can’t hold that many people, right?", Nami asked, looking at Usopp oddly.

  "Ah, uh… I meant my eighty million heavily armed soldiers, each as muscur as a mountain! Believe me, you wouldn’t want to face them", Usopp said, his legs shaking even more.

  "We kind of already figured out you’re lying. Besides, it’s just you and those three kids hiding behind the bushes, shaking those fgs", Nami said after using her Observation Haki, pointing to where the three kids were hiding before they ran off in fear.

  "AHHHH, WE’VE BEEN FOUND OUT! WHAT ARE YOU THREE DOING? DON’T RUN, YOU COWARDS!", Usopp shouted at his fleeing comrades.

  "Awwww, and here I was all excited for a potential fight", Luffy said, looking disappointed.

  "Seriously? You were believing that?", Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow.

  Meanwhile, Chouchou ughed at his captain's naivety.

  "By the way, you’re Yasopp’s son, right?", Luffy asked, suddenly enthusiastic, his mood completely different from a few seconds ago.

  "You know my father?", Usopp asked, surprised.

  "Yeah, he’s part of Shanks' crew. When I was a kid, they used my home isnd as a base for a while before they left."

  "And how is he? Did he talk about me a lot?", Usopp asked eagerly, feeling comfortable with the group.

  "Yeah, he talked about you all the time. If I’m not mistaken, Shanks’ crew is in the New World now", Luffy said, scratching his chin.

  "Wait, when you say Shanks, do you mean Red-Haired Shanks, the Yonkou?", Nami asked, incredulous at Luffy’s connections.

  "Yeah, Shanks gave me this hat. It’s my greatest treasure. I promised to return it to him when I became a great pirate", Luffy replied, holding his straw hat on his head.

  =Scene Break=

  After meeting Usopp, he took them to a restaurant because Luffy was hungry.

  After chatting for a bit, Usopp asked, "So, you guys are looking for a new bigger ship and some crew members?"

  "That’s right. Do you know anyone cool we could recruit or a ship we could buy?", Luffy asked after devouring a giant sagna like it was nothing.

  "Well, if you need people, I’ll join if I can be the captain", Usopp suggested.

  "Shishishishishi, you’re funny, Pinocchio. But seriously, do you know where we can find a ship to buy?", Luffy asked, not taking Usopp seriously.

  "Well, there’s a mansion not far from the vilge that belongs to a millionaire family. If I’m not mistaken, the dy of the house has a ship that fits what you’re looking for", Usopp said, trying to avoid further embarrassment.

  "And is she nice?", Luffy asked, still stuffing his face with food.

  "Well, despite being weak and sick, she’s a very kind and nice person", Usopp said, a little sad.

  "If she’s that weak and sick, how did she take charge?", Nami asked, curious.

  "About a year ago, her parents died in an accident, leaving everything to her."

  "But with how sad she seems, locked up in that mansion, I don’t think all that money is worth it", Usopp reflected.

  Hearing that, Nami sighed, staring at the ceiling, deep in thought.

  "Hey, ma’am, bring more food; I’m starving", Luffy called out to the waitress, raising his hand.

  "Bring me more beer", Zoro said, raising his empty gss.

  Chouchou barked, saying, "Me too, I’m still hungry, ma’am."

  "Bring some more meat for Chouchou too", Luffy said, pointing at Chouchou, as the waitress couldn’t understand animals.

  "Are you guys even paying attention?", Usopp asked, frustrated.

  "Yes, yes, sick, sad girl who lost her parents", Zoro summarized.

  Looking at the clock on the restaurant wall, Usopp stood up, scratching the back of his neck. "Oh, look at the time, guys. This is the time when I have to, uh, take a dump, and since I have the condition of having to poop on right time, or else I’ll explode, I have to go. See you ter", he said, making an excuse before running out.

  "That guy’s not very good at lying, is he?", Nami asked, amused.

  "Hmm? He was lying?", Luffy asked, confused.

  Everyone just put their hands on their faces, sighing.

  =Scene Break=

  "Hey, Tamanegi, are you sure those pirates came in here?", one of the boys who always followed Usopp asked.

  "Yeah, I saw the Captain bring them here."

  "Let’s go! We’re Usopp’s pirates, and we’re going to save the Captain!", Tamanegi said, holding a wooden sword.

  "But what if those pirates have devoured the Captain?", one of the boys said.

  "Idiot, it’s witches who eat humans, not pirates."

  "But what if one of them is a witch pirate?"

  "Just shut up, Ninjin."

  The three then moved into the restaurant and stood in front of Luffy and the gang, who had just finished eating.

  "You pirates! We’ve come to rescue Captain Usopp. Where is he?"

  "Hmmm! This meat is delicious!", Luffy said, patting his belly.

  "WHAT? No way! Could it be they really ate the Captain?", the three said simultaneously.

  While Nami tried to hold back her ughter and Chouchou simply ughed at the kids with his signature Muttley-style giggle, Zoro turned to the boys and said, "Your Captain-"

  "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?", the three interrupted, shouting.

  "We just-", Zoro continued, speaking slowly to build suspense.

  "Ate him", Luffy finished, making a weird face as he leaned in close to the three boys.

  "AAAAHHHHHHHH, WITCHHHH!", the three screamed in terror, looking at Nami.

  "WHO ARE YOU CALLING A WITCH, YOU BRATS?", Nami yelled angrily, causing the three to faint.

  Then everyone at the table, except for Nami, burst into ughter.

  "Bratty kids", Nami muttered angrily.

  =Scene Break=

  "So, he left saying he had something to do?", the three boys asked in unison.

  "Yeah. Any idea where he went?", Nami asked curiously.

  "He must’ve gone to the mansion", Carrot said, scratching his chin.

  "The sick girl’s mansion? What’s he doing there?", Zoro asked, curious.

  "He’s probably telling lies to cheer her up and make her feel better", Carrot said with a smile.

  "That’s nice of him", Nami said, resting her chin in her hand.

  "So, is the girl feeling better?", Luffy asked after burping.

  "Yeah, thanks to the Captain’s made-up stories", Onion said, nodding.

  "Alright, let’s go buy the ship Pinocchio mentioned", Luffy said, getting up and leaving the restaurant while using Observation Haki to locate the mansion.

  Knowing he wouldn’t change his mind no matter what they said, everyone followed him until they reached the mansion.

  Luffy then jumped over the wall, carrying Chouchou and Nami, while Zoro did the same, holding the three kids.

  Caught off guard, Nami clung tightly to Luffy, afraid of falling. "Warn me before you do that, Luffy", she said after they nded.

  "Shishishi, rex, Tangerine. Once you learn Geppo, I bet you’ll be running through the air all the time."

  "Why would I bet on that?", Nami asks, as if he were an idiot.

  "You don't want to bet because you know I'm right", Luffy says with a teasing smile on his face.

  “Duhhh, of course, who wouldn’t want to fly around?”, Nami says, not understanding why he was acting like he had won a game.

  "Shishishi, I knew I was right", Luffy says, satisfied for having won this game he believes is called 'provocation.'

  “Uhhh, what are you guys doing here?”, Usopp asks, sitting on a tree branch near the mansion.

  In front of him was a pretty young woman with blonde hair leaning on the open window.

  “Are these your friends, Usopp?”, the young woman asks curiously.

  "Ah, these guys came after hearing the legends told about me on the seas, they've come to join my crew", Usopp says, climbing down from the tree and putting his arm around Luffy's neck as he approached along with everyone else.

  “Hmm? Why would I join your crew? I'm the Captain, you should be the one joining my crew”, Luffy says, confused, raising an eyebrow.

  “Well, my name is Monkey D. Luffy, and I want to buy a ship from you”, Luffy says, expining why he was there.

  “Ah, nice to meet you, Luffy. My name is Kaya, and about the ship, I have one, but I would have to talk to my butler since he was the one who designed it”, Kaya says with a gentle smile on her face.

  “Fine by me, what's for dinner?”, Luffy asks, leaning against the tree in front of Kaya's bedroom window.

  “Oh, you’re staying for dinner?”, Kaya asks, starting to get excited about having guests.

  “If that’s alright with you”, Luffy says, already imagining the food would be good since it’s rich people’s food.

  “Fine by me, everyone is invited to dinner tonight”, Kaya says, her face lighting up with a radiant smile.

  Suddenly, they all hear an arrogant and authoritative voice, “Who are you, and what are you doing here?”

  “Kurahadol—”, Kaya begins to speak, only to be interrupted.

  “You can’t just invade the mansion like this”, Kurahadol says, approaching.

  “Tsk, the annoying butler is here”, Usopp mutters under his breath.

  “Leave immediately, this is trespassing”, he says, trying to shoo everyone away.

  “Kurahadol, listen, these people are—”, Kaya tries to speak again, only to be interrupted once more.

  “You must be Usopp, right? I’ve heard a lot about you. A lying orphan, son of a mediocre pirate. It’s no surprise you turned out so pathetic”, Kurahadol says, interrupting Kaya again.

  Usopp clenches his fists as he listens to this guy talking trash about him.

  “You and Miss Kaya come from different worlds, but it’s money you want, right? Come on, name your price”, he continues, mocking Usopp even more.

  When it looked like Usopp was about to go after the butler, Luffy grabbed his shoulder and stopped him from acting.

  "Kurahadol, that's enough. You've completely crossed the line. Apologize now", an angry Kaya says, raising her voice.

  Suddenly, everyone hears someone ughing loudly. When they turn their eyes in the direction of the ughter, they see Luffy ughing hard, one hand covering his eyes.

  “What’s so funny, Luffy? This seems serious”, Nami whispers, elbowing Luffy.

  "Shishishi, it's just funny, you know? This guy just called the sniper of Shanks, The Red-Haired, a Yonkou, a mediocre pirate", Luffy says, ughing again as if it were the funniest thing in the world, this time with Chouchou ughing along.

  Saying that completely calmed Usopp down and left Kurahadol utterly speechless and shocked by this information, of which he had no knowledge.

  "That's enough, Kurahadol. Usopp and these people are my friends and guests. They can come here whenever they want, and besides, they're having dinner with us tonight", Kaya says, her voice exuding authority, something that wasn’t very common for her.

  ---

  (AN: 2,078 Words)

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