Hello! This is a rewrite of one of my very first One Piece stories (which was never posted). One day I reread it, and found I disliked it but liked the concept so here we are. This was my take on Roger being able to "hear the voice of all things" (which I now know to be Haki). At the time I thought "what if he could see the future in his dreams or something"?
So... yeah. I hope you enjoy!
Raftel was a terrifying place, but a fearless crew marched on, and kept going until they found it. They had gone through hundreds of ships packed with Marine soldiers, and had even faced the largest threats the Navy had to offer, but the crew didn't bat an eye. The crew marched through another crew with the same goal, ultimately stamping them into the long-forgotten dust of history.
Yes, the crew marched on until they found it.
The sailors of the Thousand Sunny huddled around the chest. They glanced at each other nervously, but all smiling, before the black-haired captain grinned and opened the chest. There were two objects inside: a letter, and a pouch.
The captain opened the letter first, after a smack and a glare from his navigator. He tried to read it aloud.
"Dear black-haired kid with my straw hat,
Wow, you're one crazy bastard. Declaring war on the world? What kind of idiot even does that? Wait, never mind that... (I was the crazy bastard who let them call me a king, after all.)
In any case, just wanted to say hello. My name is Gol D. Roger. I am the Pirate King.
The only reason I am writing this is because I have had many dreams, boy, dreams about a child from East Blue who met my apprentice, Shanks. (It was so odd seeing him so grown up! The new look suits him, even if the scars do concern me.)
Shanks is a good person, and very perceptive. He trusted you to be the bearer of my old hat and if he chose you, then it's only natural you'd be here to read my letter. After all, that hat has a pretty good eye for important people!
You've come a long way, haven't you? First struggling to defeat my apprentice, Buggy, eventually moving on to taking down Shichibukai, Yonkous, and declaring war on the World Government. Many of the other pirates in your era, as far as I can gather, would never dream of such a thing, let alone dream at all.
So that's what's lead you to standing on Raftel today, the remains of a war scattered on the shores. I know that war is a messy thing. I'm sure you know this by now already, and you probably already dislike it- especially considering the Whitebeard battle thing. In a similar vein, I suppose, I'm not completely sure whether I mind the fact the guy with the green hair has blood all over him or not, considering the fact I hate both that fat guy's crew and the Marines under that magma admiral.
I've planned to say some final words before my execution; I think I should continue to say them, even though I know that you'll find my One Piece. Will that cause you to run to the sea, just like the others that I assume will go? Will that ultimately lead to your coronation?
I apologize for my rambling, but I am fairly sick at the moment and I do need my rest, according to Crocus. (What a doctor, am I right?)
I don't really have much else to say, but if I may ask you: what are your names? I never caught those, and I'd like to take them to my grave. I won't tell!
Sincerely, Gol D. Roger, Pirate King."
"Not bad for a first attempt," the swordsman muttered, glancing at the black-haired boy. "I've never seen you read like that, captain."
The captain laughed. "Right now, it matters the most!"
The archaeologist smiled. It seemed Roger was a fan of fairly large words, at least in his later years, many of which her captain couldn't pronounce. She found it charming, really. The navigator didn't agree; she had cringed at every word said incorrectly. (She was not as much of a forgiving person when it came to grammar as the archaeologist was.)
The fishman gave the swordsman a once-over. "I do hope somebody forces you into the bath," he muttered. If the swordsman heard him, he pointedly ignored him.
"Didn't the king say something about our names?" the musician mused. "We should probably honor his request."
The captain grinned like there was no tomorrow and screamed at the top of his lungs, "My name is Monkey D. Luffy! I'm going to be the Pirate King! Oh wait-"
The sniper didn't miss a beat, a lopsided grin forming on his face as well. "My name is Usopp-sama, the brave warrior of the sea and powerful sniper!"
The enormous fishman closed his eyes. "I am Jinbe," he added to the shoutfest the childish pair had started, though noticeably quieter. "I apologize, Pirate King."
The cook opened his mouth as if to ask why his nakama had said that, but he quickly bit his tongue. He knew damn well why the former Shichibukai had said such a thing, and unfortunately it was, in an unspoken agreement, a forbidden topic.
"I'm Roronoa Zoro!" the swordsman followed. "I am the greatest swordsman in the world- the man who defeated Mihawk!"
The shipwright grinned and jabbed a thumb to his chest. "Yo!" he said to the ceiling. "I'm Franky! The most super shipwright you'll never meet!"
"I'm Tony Tony Chopper!" the tiny reindeer doctor chimed in. "I'm looking for a cure for everything!"
"They call me Nico Robin," the archaeologist added, however unlike the others she didn't scream or yell. "Thank you for taking the Poneglyphs to Raftel, I hope I can finish your legacy in a few moments."
"My name is Nami!" the navigator yelled. "I am a navigator with many talents! I'm creating a map of the world, but I don't think I'll map Raftel!"
"Yohohohoho! I am 'Just Bones' Brook, and the fact you've been watching us makes my skin crawl! Oh, but I have no skin- skull joke!" the musician laughed at his "humerus" jokes.
"I'm the warrior chef Sanji!" the cook yelled, throwing his leg into the air and nearly kicking Usopp, who dodged, thankfully. "I am a lover of women and a creator of food!"
"We are the Straw Hat Pirates!" Luffy screamed. He lifted the bag that sat next to the letter and ripped it open. His eyes widened.
Meanwhile, over twenty years in the past and in the East Blue, Gol D. Roger woke up with a start. The feeling of being lighter than air in his dream was shattered by the cold hard stones of Loguetown's prison cell and the chafing of the rough wood around his wrists.
"Straw Hat Pirates, eh?" he whispered to himself, his mouth stretching into his normal grin. "Monkey D. Luffy. Usopp. Jinbe. Franky. Roronoa Zoro. Nami. Tony Tony Chopper. Sanji. Brook. Nico Robin."
"Shut the hell up!" the guard outside his cell yelled. Roger laughed.
"The next Pirate King... good luck, boy."
Sweat dripped down the guard's face. The next Pirate King? The government would surely take care that there would never be another Pirate King... right?
A few hours later, Roger sat atop the execution platform. The execution platform that would remain standing the same way, until the day it would be struck by lightning almost as if the skies themselves were crowning the second Pirate King. Roger was very aware of this fact as he made himself comfortable.
He was a bit surprised when the man in the crowd asked about One Piece, but to him it was perfect! He got to say what he'd been planning! This was it- the world would be changed forever. Roger grinned.
"My wealth and treasures? If you want it, I'll let you have it. Search for it! I left all of it at that place!"
He felt the pain and shock of the twin blades being driven through his body, but to him he didn't mind so long as the word got out, and he was a dead man anyway. Hopefully, his words would find their way to the ears of a little boy from East Blue, the weakest sea.
A little boy named Monkey D. Luffy, the future Second Pirate King.