Disclaimer- I don't own One Piece.
Fuusha village was a small village that lay on Dawn Island within the Goa kingdom. It was by all accounts an average village that lay in the East blue, an ocean which is considered to be the safest and most peaceful of all the seas in the world. Life was simple here and very little ever happened. Most of the people were farmers and fishermen. There was nothing much to do except kill time at the local bar.
Recently however the village had become rather lively. For the last year a group of pirates known as the Red haired pirates have made port in the village and used it as a base for whenever they set off on voyages.
The townspeople were happy to have the pirates in town since they spent most of the money they got from their voyages on wild parties which did wonders for the usually robust village economy. The fact that their presence shattered the village's usual boredom was an added bonus.
Said group of pirates were currently unloading their ship. The ship itself was a fairly large galleon class vessel that was armed with cannons as well as numerous other armaments. The wood was a strange dark red and the ships figurehead was a fearsome red dragon. The crew members of this vessel were currently laughing at the antics of a young boy who was perched on the top of the ships figurehead.
The young boys name was Monkey D. Luffy and he was trying to convince the pirates to take him on a voyage.
"I'm going to show you all how tough I am, and then you're going to have to take me on a voyage!" He yelled while waving around a knife clutched in his small hands as if it were a sword. His declaration was met with only more laughter from the pirates. This caused Luffy to get angry at the group of men for not taking him seriously.
The captain, a man by the name of Shanks spoke up. "Haha go for it! Let's see what you're going to do tough guy." He yelled to taunt the small boy.
"THIS IS HOW TOUGH I AM!" Luffy yelled, he then brought the knife up to his face and cut himself as hard as he could under his left eye.
The entire pirate crew stood there in complete shock, many with their mouths hung open. Nothing was said until their captain voiced what the entire crew was thinking.
"LUFFY YOU IDIOT WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!?"
Several hours later Luffy and the Red haired pirates were celebrating in the village bar enjoying a drink after the day's events.
Shanks raised his glass into the air "A Toast! " He called loudly to his crew drawing their attention to him." Let's drink up to our greatness and Luffy's Craziness!"
With that said the party began, the pirates began eating and drinking to their hearts content. Lucky Roo was guzzling an entire barrel of sake, Yasopp was polishing his guns while telling stories, and Benn Beckman was busy breaking up a fight between two drunken crewmates fighting over a piece of meat.
Luffy was sitting at the bar next to Shanks sharing a drink with him. "Ha it didn't hurt one bit!"He called loudly. Luffy puffed out his chest in a hopeless display to appear tough but the tears that were flowing freely from his eyes were a dead giveaway to the pain he was feeling.
"Liar! Don't do anything so stupid again!" Shanks yelled, he was honestly more concerned than angry. He didn't want Luffy doing something even dumber in the future to prove his toughness. Images of Luffy shooting himself in the foot and leaping off cliffs in an attempt to prove his toughness came to mind.
Luffy wasn't fazed by Shanks reprimand. "I'm not afraid of pain at all! Take me out on your next voyage and Ill prove myself!" Luffy proclaimed proudly. The entire crew laughed, they had heard this many times over the past year. They would go out on a voyage and return with stories of adventure causing Luffy to want to go with the next time they set sail.
Shanks was laughing at the kid's declaration. "HAHAHAHA! You can't handle being a pirate Luffy; you're like a anchor in the water. Not being able to swim is a pirate's greatest weakness! Why do you think we got you that shirt?"
Luffy looked down at his shirt and sure enough the plain white shirt had a large anchor on it. "Well it doesn't matter as long as I stay onboard the ship. Besides I'm a good fighter!" Luffy yelled as he leapt off his the bar stool he was sitting on and got into a fighting position.
"I've trained rigorously and my punch is as strong as pistol fire." Luffy proclaimed proudly while punching the air.
"Pistol fire huh?" Shanks said in a dismissive tone while sipping on his glass of sake, only half paying attention to what Luffy was saying.
If Luffy was angry before he was furious now. "WHAT KIND OF TONE IS THAT?!"
"Come one captain one voyage wouldn't hurt" Lucky Roo chimed in as several crewmates voiced their agreement that taking Luffy out once would be harmless.
"Fine I'll take him out if one of you stays behind."
"We've said enough, let's drink!" They immediately ran off to the other end of the bar to resume their partying.
"What kind of friends are you guys?!" Luffy asked angrily, whilst glaring daggers at the crew.
"Look Luffy you're still too young. Wait at least another ten years then I'll reconsider taking you out to sea." Shanks said calmly. Luffy was anything but calm. "Darn it Shanks I'm not a kid anymore!"
"Look calm down, here have some juice." Shanks slid a mug of juice over from his side of the bar into Luffy's waiting hands. Luffy never one to deny anything free thanked Shanks and began to drink happily.
"HAHAHA you really are just a kid, look at him drinking his juice!" Shanks laughed his joke made the entire crew join in his laughter. "If that juice is too strong for you I can get you a nice tall glass of warm milk!" Luffy felt embarrassed by the man's joke so he decided to walk to the opposite side of the bar and sit next to Ben Beckman.
"Luffy you should try and understand the captain's feelings." Ben Beckman said casually while taking a drag from his cigarette.
"Shanks…feelings?" Luffy asked genuinely confused.
"Yes…he is our leader. He knows being a pirate is interesting but he also knows how dangerous it is for someone as young as you to be out at sea." Ben paused to take another drag from his cancer stick "If you were hurt on a voyage he would never be able to forgive himself. "
Luffy hung his head a little after that explanation, he knew being a pirate was a dangerous thing but he couldn't help but want to join Shanks. Just then another presence entered the room, it was the owner of the bar. A pretty young woman by the name of Makino. Her dark hair and simple green dress stood out amongst all the pirates who were in the bar, she was carrying a large barrel of sake over to a bunch of pirates who were running low on the drink.
"You seem to be having fun captain." She chimed in happily while setting the barrel down.
"Yup making fun of him is my joy in life" was Shanks lighthearted response.
Before Luffy could defend himself Makino chimed in to stop the incoming fight. "Luffy would you like something to eat?"
Luffy nodded happily and prepared for his meal. Luffy realized he didn't have any money on his person so he decided to make a promise. "I don't have any money now Makino but I promise I'll pay you with my treasure."
"What treasure? Are you lying again Luffy?" Shanks questioned.
"No I'm not lying. I'm going to be a pirate and pay her back with the treasure I find."
Makino smiled at that response. "I'll just add it to your tab Luffy." She said happily before walking to the kitchen to prepare the food.
Several minutes later Luffy was biting into a steak and talking with Shanks. "So how long are you going to stay?" The boy asked while trying to tear into the tough piece of meat.
"Well set off a couple more times, then we'll head north." Luffy tried to hide his sadness at the news that they would be leaving soon.
"Well I'll be sure to learn how to swim by then." Luffy stated proudly.
Just then the bar doors swung open and slammed against the wall drawing the attention of everyone in the bar. A group of dirty looking men walked into the bar. Their clothes were worn and filthy but they were all well-armed and gave off a menacing presence. "So these are pirates huh?" The leader of the group said out as he looked around the room at the Red haired pirates who had taken a break from their partying to view the bars latest occupants. "First time I've seen pirates, they look pretty dumb to me." He said not caring they could hear everything.
He walked up to the bar and stood right next to where Shanks was sitting and addressed Makino. "We're mountain bandits, we aren't here to cause trouble we just want to buy ten barrels of sake." Makino ran a hand through her hair nervously before responding.
"I'm sorry but we've run out of Sake."
"Oh? Then what are all these pirates drinking? Is it water?" he asked while gesturing to all the pirates in the room who were drinking.
"It's sake but that's all we have" She responded trying to stay calm.
The conversation began to bore Luffy. Looking over at his plate he realized he ate all his food but he was still hungry. He saw a small chest on the bar next to him, his curiosity overcame him and he opened it up to see what was inside. It was a fruit; it was purple and looked like a bunch of grapes stuck together. Luffy was never one to pass on the chance to try something new so he bit into the exotic fruit.
He almost had to stop himself from gagging. It was bitter and seemed to taste spoiled. Luffy never believed in wasting food no matter how terrible, so he ate the rest in one bite and washed it down with some juice. He was distracted from the horrible taste when he saw the bandit smash a bottle of sake that Shanks was kind enough to offer him.
What shocked Luffy most was how Shanks didn't fight back, he just calmly cleaned up after the bandits. The leader took out a wanted poster.
"My name is Higuma, I've killed fifty-six people and I have an eight million Beli bounty on my head." He stated proudly hoping to intimidate Shanks and everyone in the bar. Rather than be intimidated Shanks simply ignored Higuma in favor of cleaning up the shattered bottle. "Makino I'm so sorry about the floor do you have a mop?"Shanks asked as he began cleaning the mess.
Hearing this Higuma took out his sword and swiped it over the bar destroying numerous bottles "There since you like cleaning you can clean all you want now." Higuma stated while laughing along with his fellow bandits. Realizing that the bar had been drunk dry and seeing nothing to gain from staying Higuma gestured for his men to leave. "See ya later you bunch of chickens" He said right as he left through the bars front doors.
After a few seconds of silence the bar erupted in laughter. "HAHAHA he really got you captain!' Lucky Roo stated cheerfully causing more laughter amongst the crew, even Shanks began laughing. Luffy was standing there not believing what he was witnessing.
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" He yelled furiously. "You should have fought him, what kind of man lets himself get pushed around like that!?"
Shanks got up off the ground before addressing Luffy. "It was just a little sake; it's not worth getting worked up about." After Shanks said that Luffy simply turned around and began walking out of the bar. "Hey now Luffy don't leave." Shanks said while grabbing Luffys arm stopping the boy.
"I don't even want to look at you Shanks LET ME GO I'm going to find a better role model!" he yelled angrily trying to shake the older man's grip. Shanks shook his head sadly and realized Luffy needed time to cool off, he couldn't expect child so young and hotheaded to understand what had happened.
"Fine have it your way." But Shanks couldn't seem to let go of Luffys arm no matter how hard he tried. Shanks immediately began to struggle to free himself. "Did you cover yourself in superglue or something, what the hell's wrong with your arm today?" Shanks asked as he continued to struggle. After a few more yanks Shanks finally managed to get himself loose but the second he did he ended up flying backwards and hitting the bar with his back.
The entire crew looked confused and shocked. They then saw that Luffys arm was coated in what looked like Black smoke. Shanks looked at his hand and saw it was also covered with the strange substance. "It couldn't be…" he said to himself. Shanks ran to the bar and opened the now empty chest.
"Luffy did you eat the fruit that was in this chest!" Shanks asked fear etched into his voice. Luffy nodded.
"Yeah I did but wasn't that desert? It was right next to my plate."
Shanks didn't know who he was angrier at. Luffy for eating a random fruit kept in a chest or himself for keeping a treasure like that next to him at the bar where food was being served. Acting on instinct he grabbed the boy by his ankles and hoisted him up and began to shake him up and down. "LUFFY YOU NEED TO SPIT IT OUT RIGHT NOW!"
Ben Beckman ran up to his captain and got him to cease his shaking of the young boy. "Captain it's too late he already has the powers! The fruits get to work after the first bite." As if to prove his point Luffy's legs became coated in darkness and the boys gravity increased causing Shanks to drop Luffy who landed on the ground in a heap.
After a minute of calming both Shanks and Luffy down Ben Beckman was able to calmly explain what had occurred to the shocked young boy." Luffy that was a devil fruit and one of the treasures of the sea. Whoever eats one will get a great power but will never be able to swim in the ocean again." Luffy's jaw was literally hanging to the floor; he was stunned into silence it seemed as if his dream of being a pirate just ended.
Three days later
Luffy was seated once again in Makinos bar. However this time the bar was practically empty except for him, Makino and a couple of farmers in the corner having their lunch. He sat there depressed while drinking some juice Makino was nice enough to give him. "I really misjudged those guys! I thought they were brave and tough…" Luffy muttered sadly.
"Are you sure about that Luffy? Maybe sometimes it takes more courage not to fight." Makino said happily while she polished a glass. Luffy however did not look convinced.
"You're a girl Makino you wouldn't understand. Men stand up for themselves no matter what happens." Luffy said in between sips from his juice.
Ignoring Luffys stab at her gender Makino decided to agree with him. The boy was just too young to understand what Shanks did. "Is that right? I guess I don't understand."
That very second the bar door swung open. "Make way for the terror of the highlands!" The Mountain bandit from three days earlier walked in with his fellow bandits trailing behind him. They all took their seats around the bar. "No pirates in here today? It certainly smells better."
He sat down and leaned back into his chair. "Well what are you waiting for? We aren't so cruel that we won't pay, so serve us some sake."
Ten minutes later
Mayor Woop Slap loved it whenever the pirates left the village. It's not that he hated or even disliked the pirates; he even had Shanks over for tea one afternoon and enjoyed the man's company greatly.
But he loved how peaceful the village was in their absence. In his younger years he had traveled the world on a merchant ship and saw his share of the terrors the seas held. So now in his old age all he wanted to do was sit back, relax, and maintain the peace of his beloved village.
He took a sip of tea while he sat down in his comfortable chair. He was organizing some papers related to the village's finances and found himself slipping into a state of complete serenity.
"Mayor we've got a problem!" Makino yelled as she ran into the mayor's house.
"I knew things were too damn peaceful."He muttered under his breath. "What's wrong Makino?"
"It's Luffy! He's being attacked by those Mountain bandits!" Concern and fear evident in her voice and made the mayor act immediately without questioning her further. The Mayor grabbed his walking cane and prepared himself for the confrontation.
He briefly considered joining Shanks on his next voyage, maybe then he could get some rest.
"Ha look at this kid cry; he can barely take any pain at all!" Higuma cackled loudly as he beat Luffy into the ground.
"DAMN YOU, YOUD BETTER TAKE BACK WHAT YOU SAID!" Luffy yelled as he tried his best to punch Higuma. He was going to beat this guy if it was the last thing he did.
But no matter how much he tried he couldn't even lay a punch on the man. He remembered how hard he had trained in order to prove to Shanks how strong he was. He couldn't believe he was so weak and helpless.
"Please let the child go!"The Mayor yelled as he walked up to the group of bandits drawing their attention. The mayor instantly got on his knees.
"I know what Luffy did, and I have no intention of arguing with you." He said in the bravest and most respectful voice he could muster. "But I'm willing to pay you any amount of money, just please let him go."
Higuma turned his attention to the mayor before speaking. "As one would expect it is the elders that know the proper way to deal with any situation." For a second everyone thought this would end peacefully.
"But it's too late! "Higuma yelled."This brat insulted me and I can't let that go unpunished!" He pulled out his sword and was just about to bring it down upon Luffy's head.
But before he could, Shanks entered the scene along with his crew. "I was wondering why no one was there to greet us at the docks." He said as he began walking towards the bandits.
"Heh aren't you the pirates from before? Are you going to clean up the whole town this time?" Higuma asked insultingly. Shanks continued walking towards the bandits acting like he didn't even hear Higuma. After taking a few more steps a Bandit came up and pointed a gun at the captain's head.
"That's close enough sea rat, if you take one step closer to my boss Ill blow your pretty little head off."
"You shouldn't pull out guns and point them at people, you could get hurt." Shanks said calmly while gesturing towards the thug's gun.
This just confused the bandit
"What'd you just say?"
"I said you shouldn't use guns to scare people or you could end up getting hurt."
BOOM!
Everyone was shocked as Lucky Roo the chubbiest and most fun loving member of Shanks crew appeared next to the bandit and shot him in the head while casually eating a piece of meat. The Bandit plopped to the ground lifeless as blood began to pool beneath him.
The Bandits stood there shocked beyond belief that anyone would challenge them but they weren't nearly as shocked as Luffy was. The boy lay on the ground still pinned by Higumas foot but he stared wide eyed at the spectacle before him with complete attention. Luffy had never seen the Red haired pirates do anything more violent than a brawl over food or alcohol in the six months they had stayed in the village. But now he was seeing what it really meant to be a pirate.
If Higuma was angry before, he was seething now. "That was a dirty trick!" He yelled gesturing towards his dead comrade.
"Dirty?" Began Benn Beckman while he casually smoked his cigarette. "Do we look like saints to you?"
"The people standing before you are pirates." Shanks finished.
One of the thugs spoke up "This is none of your damn business so just walk away while you still can!"
"Listen well bandits, you can whip sake and food at me, you can even spit on me and I'll just laugh it off…but." Shanks tone started calmly but was quickly becoming darker and angrier. "I will never forgive anyone who hurts one of my friends!"
Luffy was shocked by Shanks declaration and immediately felt relief and happiness flood through his injured body.
Higuma however was simply amused.
"HAHAHA forgive me? We will destroy you!" He proclaimed loudly. "Get em boys!" With that loud declaration the bandits began to charge the pirates with their swords drawn.
"Leave this to me captain." Benn Beckman said in a laid back tone, he took the cigarette from his mouth and shoved it into the eye of the first bandit causing him to fall back in pain. He then took his rifle and swung it like a club. He swung his gun in a large arch that clobbered several of the Highland bandits who simply fell to the ground beaten and helpless. All the bandits were beaten to a bloody pulp in a matter of seconds.
"Don't underestimate us. If you want to fight us on equal ground you should bring a battalion of marines and a battleship." Ben said casually while standing over the bodies of the bandits. Higuma was shaking in fear. He then took a pistol from his belt and pointed it at Luffys head.
"If any of you even moves a muscle Ill blow this kids head off!"
Luffy was terrified like any child would be in this situation. But he felt his resolve grow stronger as he began to fight against Higuma's weight on his body. 'I have to beat this guy, I CANT DIE NOW!' He thought as he put all his energy into struggling.
As if responding to Luffy's will to live, the power that lay within him awakened. Darkness began to coat his body protectively and spread across the ground all around him.
Higuma who had Luffy pinned down with his foot instantly began sinking. "What the hell is this!?" he screamed. Fear overcame him as he struggled to get out of the pool of darkness. He felt like he was being crushed by the air above him. Worse was that every inch of his body that entered the darkness felt like it was being crushed and beaten. After five seconds Higuma was gone, completely consumed by the void.
Everyone who saw this was shocked into silence, not believing what they just observed. Shanks quickly recovered from his shock and ran over to Luffy.
"Luffy are you okay?" The pirate captained questioned as he began to inspect the boy for any injuries.
Luffy lifted himself off the ground weakly. The darkness that coated his body and the ground around him receded back into Luffy as if it were becoming a part of him. Luffy didn't want to worry Shanks so simply gave him a big toothy grin that instantly removed all worry and concern Shanks was feeling.
"I guess I'm okay… but I feel really weird." Luffy stated while staring at his right hand. He felt like he wanted to do…something. It felt like an instinct.
Giving into the urge he was feeling, Luffy thrust his hand out and he watched in amazement as the darkness appeared on the palm of his hand creating what looked like a small black hole. A large figure shot out of it crashing into the wall of a nearby building. When the dust cleared everyone saw the battered form of Higuma lying on the ground. The man looked like he had been trampled by an elephant and the only thing that reassured everyone that the man was still alive was the pained groans he was letting out.
Everyone was quiet not knowing what to say. They were simply staring in amazement at what just happened. Surprisingly Luffy was the first one to recover from the shock.
"THAT WAS SO COOL!"
Later that Night
Shanks found himself sitting in Makinos now empty bar with nothing but a barrel of sake for company. After the day's events Makino had decided to stay with Luffy to make sure the boy was okay. Shanks volunteered to watch the bar in her absence, it gave him the perfect opportunity to reflect on the thoughts that plagued his mind.
"I really messed things up…I'm sorry Luffy." Shanks muttered to himself as he finished off another glass of sake. The taste was bitter and burned his mouth. He was about to consider switching over to something stronger and began looking through Makinos whisky and rum stores when he suddenly felt another presence in the bar.
"I knew I'd find you here captain." Ben Beckman said as he pulled up a stool and sat next to Shanks. Shanks simply poured out two shots of whisky and handed one to Ben who downed the drink in one go. "I know you like to drink Captain but usually it's when we are partying, I think this is the first time I've seen you drink alone."
Shanks response was to down his own shot of whisky, the alcohol went down smoothly and Shanks sighed in pleasure at the feeling. "I just needed some time to think, I've had a lot on my mind lately." Ben turned and took a good look at his captain, the usually goofy and happy go lucky man was the perfect picture of exhaustion and worry. Ben didn't like it and he didn't want the crew to see the captain in such a state.
"I don't see what you're so worried about, Luffy got out of that situation with only a few bruises and scratches, it helps build character." Ben stated while pouring himself another drink.
"I'm not worried about that I'm worried about Luffy eating that damn Devil fruit, it might just be the death of him and an end to his dream of becoming a pirate before it even starts." Shanks stated in a tone that was laced with worry. "Because of my stupidity I might have ruined Luffy's life. I should have left the fruit on the ship in a locked chest but I had planned to make it a prize in a drinking game. I can't believe I was so stupid!" Shanks yelled angrily, he reached for the whisky bottle but Ben grabbed the bottle before Shanks could reach it.
"That's what's troubling you?" Ben questioned whilst setting the bottle aside. "Most of the world's strongest pirates have been Devil fruit users, it's not that big a deal. Hell you might have helped Luffy out big time. That kids going to grow to be a huge powerhouse of a pirate. The loss of his ability to swim is a bit rough but it's a manageable problem." Ben soothed while he pulled out a cancer stick and began smoking.
Shanks shook his head sadly. "I'm not worried about that, I know that the fruits power will help him, but it will also make him a target. " Shanks grabbed a book that had been sitting on top of the bar this entire time and handed it to Ben.
Ben recognized the book immediately, it was the encyclopedia of Devil Fruits, a very rare book written by Dr. Vegapunk, who was the smartest man in the said research into Devil Fruits and various other areas of science was legendary. The man was said to be five hundred years ahead of his time.
The book itself was rare due to it being illegal to hold unless you were authorized by the government to read it. The reason being was that it not only cataloged all the Devil Fruits in the seas but also held all the secrets and powers that had found about them as well as various ways to use each fruits power. The world government didn't want it falling into the hands of criminals who would use the book to expand their knowledge on Devil Fruits. They were terrified of pirates being able to find and recognize powerful fruits and use them to their fullest potential.
"I got it back when we were traveling through the New World, figured it might come in handy if we ever found one. Look up the Dark Dark Fruit." Shanks ordered as he grabbed the whisky bottle from Ben's hands and poured himself another glass. Ben did as his captain ordered and began skimming through the books various entries until he found the fruit in question near the very end. He began reading and the more he read the more he understood his captain's behavior. "This fruit is…" Ben trailed off not sure what to day.
"Possibly one of the strongest and most dangerous Devil Fruits in the world." Shanks finished for his first mate. "If it were a weaker or less notorious Devil Fruit I wouldn't be worried. But something of this power will attract marines and numerous other enemies. The World Government doesn't like to let Logia users run free in this world. Especially this one…It's possibly the strongest Logia in existence not to mention extremely dangerous to the user if used incorrectly." Shanks downed another shot of whisky before continuing. "And it's all my fault that Luffy's been burdened with this."
Ben let out a frustrated sigh. "You're blaming yourself too much captain. Luffy's a strong kid, he'll be fine. Besides there's not much we can do anyway." Ben stated while taking a drag of his cigarette. "Were setting out for the New World in a few days, so don't worry about it and enjoy some time with the kid before we depart."
"We aren't leaving in two days Ben." Shanks stated with conviction, shocking Ben who let the cigarette fall from his mouth.
"But captain we've been here too long, if we stay here much longer the marines will catch on to us and Luffy will be in even more danger. Besides we've been on this peaceful sea for a long time. The men are anxious to get back to the Grand line."
"I already know that Ben, I have no intention of staying here forever." Shanks retorted. Ben rubbed the front of his forehead trying to banish the headache he felt coming. He loved his captain but the man could be stubborn at times.
"Then what are we going to do? We can't take Luffy out to sea, he's far too young and we can't stay here. What is it you intend to do captain?"
"That's what I've been trying to figure out this whole time." Shanks muttered frustration evident in his voice. "I need to find a way to give Luffy an advantage when he goes out to sea, a way for me to teach him how to be a good pirate and to control his powers without actually having to be there."
"Well I don't know how that's possible captain, it's not like there's a book on how to be a good pirate." Ben mused out loud while turning back to his drink. He was completely unaware of how wide his captain's eyes had just gotten.
"BEN YOU ARE A GENIUS!" Shanks ran up and hugged his first mate. "Tell the men we are staying here for a few more weeks, I have preparations to make." Shanks ran out of the bar and headed towards the docks at top speed leaving behind a very confused first mate.
"What the hell is that man up to?"
Two weeks later
Luffy walked down to the village docks with a bit of a spring in his step. The last two weeks had been the best of his short life. Usually Shanks would make port for a couple of days before leaving again but he had spent an entire two weeks spending time with Luffy and telling him endless stories and teaching him the basics of what he would need when he set out to become a pirate.
The reason Luffy was heading down to the dock now was that one of Shanks men had said that Shanks wanted to speak with him near where the Red haired pirates anchored their ship. Luffy had been anticipating this all day imagining what Shanks wanted to talk about, normally the man would come and find Luffy , this was the first time he had been summoned before. "Maybe he's finally going to take me out on a voyage." By the time Luffy arrived it was late in the afternoon and the sun had a beautiful orange hue to it as it slowly sank into the western horizon. He saw Shanks sitting at the end of the docks with his feet dangling over the sides, but what was most noticeable was the giant chest that lay on his side.
Shanks took a drink from a bottle he was holding. "Hey Luffy come have a seat with me." Shanks gestured to the spot next to him. The young boy walked over and took a seat next to his role model. Shanks turned to the large chest next to him. "I know you'll be setting out to sea in the future and I wanted to make sure you were well prepared." He gestured for Luffy to open the chest. The boy did as he was urged and opened up the chest and looked at the contents.
"It's…books…" Luffy muttered trying to hide the disappointment in his voice. He was never one to feel ungrateful for a gift but in a chest this large he was hoping for something more…piratey. "I like it when Makino reads me adventure stories but I never really liked doing the reading."
Shanks expected this response and simply let out a light chuckle. "A good pirate needs to know how to read Luffy. Besides those book are anything but boring. Throughout my adventures in all the blue seas and the Grand line I gathered all sorts of books from books on navigation to books about unique islands and adventures people have had. A great captain needs to be knowledgeable Luffy, how do you think I became the man I am today?"
"But Shanks…If I read all this stuff wont it be cheating? I mean I want to be prepared but I also don't want a boring adventure." Shanks knew Luffy would say something like that and had prepared for it.
"Those book are just general tips, besides no two adventures are alike, trust me Luffy you can read all those book and still be endlessly surprised by the Grandline. This isn't cheating." That seemed to soothe the boy's fears of cheating and having a boring adventure so Shanks pressed on. "There's also stuff under the books, it's a huge chest."
Luffy's eyes widened and he quickly began digging through the chest, he found a box full of navigational equipment such as compasses and other tools he didn't know how to use and some strange orb with a needle in it and various other useful things. But what startled Luffy's most of all was that there was a ton of money that filled up a good deal of the chest. "Shanks what's with all this money? I don't want to take your hard earned treasure."
Shanks laughed at Luffy's response. "It's not my money. I had one of my men pose as a bounty hunter and turn in those mountain bandits to the local marine base. Higuma alone was worth 8 million beli but most of the others had bounties as well. Altogether that's 15 million beli in that box, and it's all yours since you're the one who took down Higuma."
Luffy's was shocked but he quickly overcame it. "But Shanks Ben took down all the other guys and Lucky Roo took out one as well, don't they deserve some of this?" Luffy asked.
"Meh Luffy don't worry about it, all the guys were cool with it. Besides that money is nothing compared to what we've gotten in our voyages in this sea. You're going to have to learn to take money Luffy, otherwise you're going to be a very poor pirate."
Luffy didn't know what to say so he simply got up and hugged Shanks with all his might. He rarely ever got presents, he didn't have any parents and his Grandfathers visits and parenting were sporadic at the best of times. "Thank you Shanks…" Luffy muttered trying to hold back tears of joy.
"Don't worry about it, the sea is a dangerous place and I don't want you going out unprepared. Especially with that devil fruit power of yours."
"What's wrong with my power?" Luffy asked. "It let me beat up Higuma, if anything it has made me stronger." Luffy finished as he flexed his arms for effect. Shanks shook his head sadly.
"Look Luffy you are stronger but that Devil fruit is dangerous, it can make you overconfident and let you drop down your guard. No matter how strong that fruit makes you I never want you to stop training your body or honing your combat skills. The worst possible thing you could do is rely completely on that power of yours. Logia users who believe they are invincible have short lifespans. Do you understand?" Shanks usual demeanor was gone and he now had the bearing of a strict father. Luffy saw the seriousness in Shanks eyes and nodded.
"I promise I won't stop training, and I promise I won't get lazy and rely on my new powers." Luffy stated with complete conviction.
Shanks visibly relaxed, a huge burden was lifted from his shoulders upon hearing those words. "We are setting sail tomorrow, so I won't be around to protect you anymore. Be sure to see us off tomorrow, and keep all that stuff safe, you are going to need it someday."
The Next morning
The Fuusha village docks were full of activity as men ran about loading up various cargo and other necessities onto the Red haired Pirates ship. Various townspeople had also come down to see their favorite pirate crew off. One of those individuals was Monkey D. Luffy and he stood next to his role model Shanks as his men began to load the last of the cargo.
"So this is it?" The boy question. "You're leaving for good this time?"
Shanks nodded. "Yup, we've stayed here long enough, it's about time we moved on. This is the longest we've ever stayed in one spot before…are you upset that were leaving?" The small boy nodded but his face didn't show much sadness.
"Yeah but its fine, I'm not going to ask you to take me out on a voyage. I've decided to simply wait until I'm old enough to become a pirate by myself. Then I'll find you on the seas and show you how great I am."
The older man let out a loud belly laugh. "You're going to make a great pirate someday Luffy but there's no way you'll ever be in the same league as me and my crew. I'm all the way up here." Shanks gestured up high as far as he could reach. "And you're all the way down here." He gestured to the ground. "I would go lower but I don't have a shovel."
"I'll show you Shanks!" Luffy yelled defiantly. "One day I'm going to find a crew that's as strong as yours, and then I'll find the world's greatest treasure. AND BECOME THE PIRATE KING!" He yelled, drawing the attention of everyone on the docks. Shanks crew members simply smiled at the young boy they had come to see as one of their own.
Luffy expected Shanks to laugh at him or make fun of him but instead the man simply smiled. "You plan on being stronger than us someday eh?" Shanks took reached for his sword and handed it to the boy.
It was a naval sabre with a long straight blade made out of a black metal. It had a large handguard made out of gold plate, it was richly decorated with intricate runes.
It was the first time Luffy had ever seen the blade up close and it took his breathe away.
"This sword is my most precious possession. It is my gift to you, one day when you become a great pirate you'll return it to me." He gave Luffy the blade and the boy took it carefully and held it against his chest.
Shanks had planned to give Luffy his straw hat but after seeing the boy's power he doubted the hat would survive crushing gravity and darkness. His sword would also be far more practical and help Luffy survive and become a great pirate.
Shanks walked up to his ship and passed by Ben Beckman. "That kid is going to be a famous pirate someday." Ben said to his captain in a soft voice so that Luffy didn't hear.
"I know he is, he reminds me a lot of myself when I was his age…he even reminds me of a certain man."
The Red haired pirates set sail for the Grandline leaving Fuusha village and a certain boy behind. Shanks looked over the side of the ship and saw all the townsfolk waving goodbye and in front of them was a teary eyed Luffy.
"Grow strong Luffy…"
Ten Years later.
"He finally left chief." Makino said, trying to hide the sadness in her voice. "Were really going to miss that little ball of energy."
The Mayor nodded his agreement, not even bothering to hide the grimace on his face. "He is going to ruin this town's reputation."
The boy in question was floating out at sea in a small little dinghy of a ship, laying back and enjoying the suns wonderful rays. "The weather sure is nice today." A now grown up Luffy said as he stretched. The boy wore a long black coat with a white undershirt, a pair of simple black pants and some quality boots. He also wore a leather sword harness which held sabre. He also had two flintlock pistols tucked away in a gun belt.
Suddenly Luffy heard a loud noise and looked up and saw a large sea serpent looking at him. "So you're the serpent that's been bothering my villages fishing boats eh?" The boy questioned as he got up, he picked up a small cannonball that was laying on the bottom of his boat and looked up at the beast. The creature stared him down and reared its head back, preparing to lunge.
Luffy's hand became coated in darkness and the cannonball he had in it sunk into the darkness. Luffy reared his now empty hand behind him as if preparing for a punch. The sea king lunged for the boy and Luffy thrust his hand forward, his palm open. A small black hole opened up in the palm of his outstretched hand and the cannonball he absorbed shot out of it.
"Gravity Cannon!"
The ball propelled itself forward, and nailed the serpent in the center of its head, killing it instantly.
"Heh I think my cannonball throw is stronger than Grandpas…even if it isn't really a throw." The boy said to himself as he looked at the now dead serpent. He opened up another black hole in his hand and used his free hand to reach into it, after a few seconds of rummaging around he pulled out a large fillet knife, he reached back into the hole and eventually pulled out some wasabi and dried seaweed. "Sea serpent sushi for lunch sounds good."
So began the tale of the next Pirate King.
Authors Note
Please leave a review, They give me inspiration and let me know if the story is a good one or not.
If this story seems familiar some of you might have already read a chapter similar to this many years ago. That's because I posted this chapter under a different name and title before but never bothered updating it. Since then I've had inspiration to try again, I rewrote this chapter and currently have 5 chapters written they just need editing.
Any questions or suggestions leave them in a review or PM me.
Currently main thing I'm thinking about is going to be the crew name of Luffy's crew since I can't go with Straw hat pirates. Originally Luffy was going to get the straw-hat but I decided to challenge myself to write something different. I have a few names chosen but I would like to hear all of your suggestions and ideas.
Cheers!