The air lies heavily over the land, thick with moisture. Clouds billow overhead, tumbling constantly in the strong wind. The ruins of a ship lie lonely and broken out on the bay. Barely visible through the fog, a boy in a straw hat stands on a fragment of the ship. It's hard to tell from the shore whether the red all over his chest is his shirt or blood.

The rain starts, softly at first, but in a moment it pelts the ground with great force. The boy sways gently. His knees suddenly give way, aided by the torrent, and he is lying on the deck. He can hear his nakama calling him from a distance.

He wonders if they'll make it to him…

"Stay here, help Nami!"

"Where are you going?"

"I'll take the ships..."

"Careful, Captain…"

He knew from the moment he boarded the ships that the outcome wouldn't be good. These men were tough, and he was dangerously close to the sea. But he'd survived worse. He'd make it.

And now he was alone, all twenty of the ships destroyed, his enemies floating away with the tide or fleeing on the 21st ship.

His memory was fleeting… the pain was too great for him to think clearly…

"Luffy!"

"Those bastards…"

"Where is he? LUFFY!"

He shudders, blood bubbling out of the most recent wound. Damned seastone. Sneaky bastards. Stabbed in the back.

"The ships are gone…"

"Chopper, quick, Zoro's hurt…"

"I've got him, Doctor-san…"

"What the hell happened?"

Shakily, the boy tries to rise, but his body will not move. Pain erupts from a wound, and he blacks out for a moment. He cannot rest now… there is something wrong…

The rain is hard, battering against the still form on the splintered remains of the ship. Waves swell and crash over the edge.

The boy's hand grips the edge, so hard that it cracks. He can't let go. The sea is his enemy.

"Wait… what's that? That ship out there…"

"He's there! Luffy!"

"The waves! He can't…"

"I'll get him-"

"No, don't move, your legs aren't…"

The echoes are louder now, but his mind is looser. He can't see any more… he feels numb... he can barely feel the rain… all he knows is cold…

"Ah! Luffy, god… get up… hah… we have to get… hah… back to Sunny… Come on, Luffy, open your eyes..."

Usopp… the name springs into the boy's head. The voice is very close now, and so familiar…

"Luffy! Oh my god, Luffy…"

"What the hell did this?"

"He's hardly breathing… Franky, get Doctor-san…"

"Hold on, Luffy…"

I… I know these people… The boy thinks, one clear thought through the pain. He can't feel anything but pain and freezing shudders rippling from where the people touch him.

It's getting so hard to breathe…

"CHOPPER! Luffy's not breathing…"

"Don't go, Luffy… please…"

"I've got him! Just do as I say…"

A jolt runs through the boy. He gasps air into his tortured lungs, crying out in pain. He's lying down, bloodied and cold, surrounded by faces…

"Luffy… oh my god…"

"Don't do that again! Please… don't scare me like that again…"

"Is he going to be all right?"

"I… don't know…"

"But he's awake! He has to be!"

"He's hurt badly… he's lost too much blood…"

For seven days, the boy sleeps…

The first day, he is feverish, too weak to do anything but lie there. His crew gathers around him…

The second day, he is barely alive…

The third day, he has more colour in him, but shudders at the touch…

The fourth day, his wounds are beginning to heal…

The fifth day, he is thinner but healthier in colour…

The sixth day, there's a drip attached to his arm, and his fever is gone…

The seventh day, he opens his eyes and whispers,

"Meat…"