AN: 申し訳ありません.
Odyssey of the Will of 'D'
Chapter 9
Across the World
At Marine Headquarters located on Marineford in Paradise, nearly the entirety of the base abuzz with activity as was the norm for the brains of the operations of all Marines throughout the world. New recruits were being trained as was tradition in the ways of swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat and marksmanship. Those that had passed were taking lessons on the structuring of the Marines and its vast history, detailing the highlights of the past century in particular. Flotillas and fleets were being deployed on tours or patrols throughout Paradise or the New World or going to the Branches in the Four Seas carrying their much needed reinforcements and relief. Some ceremonies were going on promoting Marines to their next rank. Other Marines were retiring from their shifts and returning to their on-base homes that housed their families. In the areas that were unrestricted for the civilian families one could see children laughing and playing while mothers gossiped to one another.
"Did anyone report that Admiral Kuzan has gone out for a ride?" a Marine Ensign on guard duty asked his partner.
"I'll phone it in," the woman to his left, an Ensign Katherine, sighed as she pulled out her Den-Den Mushi. "Man, I wonder who's going to get stuck with sanitation duty for this."
"They could end up with having to clean up after Fleet Admiral Sengoku's goat," Ensign Richard predicted with a laugh.
"Rick," the brunette sighed beside him before grabbing his nose and twisting it.
"Apples! Apples!"
"Next!" a topless mountain of a man shouted, seven Marine Captains lying around him with bruises. A few Marines took a step back, fearful of taking on the Admiral Sakazuki.
"HHHYYYYAAAA!" a female Captain roared as she charged. Once she was close enough she ducked under the punch aimed at her head and spun around him and looped her arms under his pits and attempted to life him.
"WEAK!" the Magma Man shouted as he rolled forward and slammed the woman on her back, breaking her hold on his body. He then reared his hand back to punch her in the face, but was pleasantly surprised when rolled forward away from him. And luckily she did, as his fist broke through the training mat. The Captain soon climbed back to her feet, sweating heavily and breathing hard. A smirk came to the Admiral's face when he saw the fierce look in her eyes, a look he wanted to drill into every single one of his subordinates.
He then fell back into a ready stance and beckoned to her and the other Marines, his eyes steely and lips in a thin line.
"COME!"
"Admiral Kizaru, your eleven o'clock appointment is here, Sir," a Marine Chief Petty Officer announced as he snapped off a crisp salute.
"Send him in," Borsalino, a rather tall man dressed in a yellow pin-striped suit drawled as he read over an After-Action Report on an operation in the South Blue. At least fifteen injured and two dead, one of them being the third of five brothers to die in the line of duty in that particular Sea. He would have to write up a report to have the other two sons, one stationed in West Blue and the other in North Blue, reassigned to Marineford instead for a safer assignment.
"Sir, it's a woman."
"Ooh?" he inquired as the sun reflected off of his yellow shades.
"Yes sir, it's your sister."
"Come again?" he asked as he rubbed the stubble on his chin. How on earth had he missed that on his schedule? "My sister? How long has she had this appointment set in advance?"
"Your sister has been on the schedule for nearly a month, Sir."
"A month?" Oh, he was so going to have Ensign Yubi on sanitation duty for the next month for not notifying him of this properly. He could have used the excuse to see Sentomaru, bug Sakazuki or go on a tour throughout Paradise.
"Yes sir?" Now he was sweatdropping.
"Damn," Borsalino sighed as he dropped his head to his desk and banged it several times. Boy did he hate dealing with his sister.
"ONII-CHAN!"
"Goddammit."
The Fleet Admiral was of course looking through mountains and mountains of documents as was his usual routine ever since taking the position from the previous Fleet Admiral, Kong. He sighed as he wrote off on a requisitions form for more soap for the Marines on Muddy Island.
"Approved," he muttered as he signed off on it, then stamped it and filed it into the correct pile.
"Request denied," Sengoku grumbled as he signed off on the denied line, lifted a small stamper and pressed down, letting the red ink seep in before lifting once more and staring down at the red 'DENIED'. He then sighed as he passed the paper into is corresponding pile.
"Approved." Stamp. File.
"Approved." Stamp. File.
"Approved." Stamp. File. "Denied." Stamp. File.
"Approved." Stamp. File. "Approved." Stamp. File.
"Denied." Stamp. File. "Denied." Stamp. File.
"Finally done with the requisition files," Sengoku sighed as he pulled up his Den-Den Mushi and rung up his personal assistant. "Master Chief Lori."
"Yes Fleet Admiral?" came the almost bubbly reply from his personal assistant.
"Get me some Rice Crackers and Oolong Tea please."
"Right away sir." A click followed signaling the end of the conversation.
Sengoku sighed as he leaned back in his chair and rubbed his temples. It was only eleven fifty-six in the morning, and he had somehow made it through that massive stack of requisition forms. Though to be frank he had spent the last ten hours cooped up in his office wading through at least five days' worth of backlog. Now all he had to worry about was going over reports from each of the Seas and then he could go off to grab a bite to eat. Maybe he could even laze about and catch an hour's worth of sleep, because only the sea knew he needed it. Without Garp back at Marine Headquarters, the place was just worlds more quiet, so much so that one could make the assumption that they were on the wrong island, as Garp's boisterous laugh and antics had been a mainstay of the island for nearly half a century.
"Your rice crackers and tea, sir," the Master Chief stated after she had knocked on the door. Sengoku called for her and dismissed her once she had set down the tray, thanking her before she had passed the threshold.
The aging Fleet Admiral decided to start with the status reports from the Branches in East Blue first, as he felt he would be able to get through those fastest as that sea was the most peaceful of all the Four Seas. That was relatively speaking, because there were still incidents of pirate raids, uprisings and Sea King attacks, but compared to the other Four Seas it was barely a tenth of the incidents in the others. The reports from East Blue numbered only in the double digits, and usually never going higher than seventy or so, while the reports from the other three seas were usually in the mid-range for the triple digits.
"Shells Town… What?" Sengoku read again, his eyes scanning the document before him. That explained why Garp had left Marine Headquarters, he was going on a tour through the East Blue. But to find out that a Marine Captain was abusing his power while residing in a peaceful town? Were it not for the fact that Morgan had been defeated-
"MONKEY D. LUFFY?!"
"Is everything all right Fleet Admiral?" his Den-Den Mushi spoke up, his secretary's voice carrying through.
"Carry on Master Chief, I'm fine," Sengoku replied, running his left hand through his afro.
"Of course, sir."
Sengoku sighed as he rubbed his eyes before focusing on the report.
This was bad. That loose cannon of a young man running amok in East Blue was certainly asking for trouble, what with his heritage and strength. He had remembered the youngster running around Marine Headquarters a few years back and had hoped that he would turn out to be a Marine of renown much like his grandfather.
Boy, was Sengoku mistaken on that part.
They had ignored his declarations of becoming a pirate, believing that Garp would be able to pound some sense into his head and make him a Marine the people of the world could look up to in this age of pirates.
More than likely Garp was hot on his grandson's trail, hoping to redeem himself for letting Luffy do as he pleased as a pirate. Maybe his old friend could convince Luffy to become a Marine, or maybe even a Shichibukai if there was an opening. Whatever the case, Sengoku only hoped that Garp found his grandson soon and punished him, before another man bearing 'D.' rocked the world.
"Let's see… Branch Two-Five… Orange Town." He hummed as he looked over the report. So far the town had begun to rebuild after having been damaged by the antics of one Buggy the Clown and his Buggy Pirates. Apparently, the saviors were an unlikely bad of pirates lead by- "This can't be happening," he groaned as he saw that it was Monkey D. Luffy coming in to save the day with four crewmates backing him up. Garp had apparently just missed them, but once he had the trail he set sail to follow them to Gecko Islands. The paper attached to the report drew his attention, as it was generally used for bounty posters.
With growing dread Sengoku flipped the paper and confirmed his fears. Monkey D. Luffy had a bounty now on his head, one vastly larger than any pirate currently in the East Blue. He had an inkling that the Vice-Admiral had posted the bounty, as only a handful of people knew the true capabilities of that young man. Sengoku was not surprised that it said 'Alive' however, as he knew that Garp had a chance of changing Luffy's allegiance so long as he did not cross the World Government or harm any civilians.
"Branch Three-Seven… Nothing to report…. Branch Five-Eight… Captured 'Six Sided' Spiel eh? 'Claims to have been defeated by a rubber-' what is that kid doing?" he grumbled to himself as he slid that paper into the 'Read' pile.
"Branch Four-Two… Transfer of prisoner… 'Thousand Plan' Kuro into holding cells from the custody of Vice-Admiral Garp? Faked his death by tricking Captain Morgan with a body-double. Hid in Syrup Village posing as a butler and planned to kill Kaya of the Albatross family and inherit her fortune. Defeated by Monkey D. Luffy." Sengoku released a sigh as he leaned back in his chair and scrubbed his face. He did not know how to feel about Luffy's antics so far in the past month he had reappeared in East Blue.
On one hand he was a pirate, and all pirates were known to be scumbags who were part of raiding parties, human trafficking circles and illegal arms deals, save for a few he knew. But at the same time, Luffy was doing a more admirable job than the Marines of East Blue. He now had a proverbial egg on his face because of that, as the Marines were supposed to the keepers of the peace, not pirates.
Cracking open the package of rice crackers, the Fleet Admiral rummaged around in the bag before pulling one out and munching on it before continuing through the files. "Branch One-O-Five… Sea King reported in the vicinity… Non-hostile, no deaths… Branch Two-Nine… Transfer of the prisoner 'Pirate Admiral' Don Krieg into holding cells from custody of Vice-Admiral Garp. Planned to sail to the Grand Line a second time after being defeated by Shichibukai Dracule Mihawk initially. Defeated by the navigator of the Straw-Hat Pirates, Nami of Cocoyashi." He bit into his third rice cracker and tossed the file onto the pile, no longer surprised that Luffy was seemingly going around and cleaning up East Blue. It was his home after all.
He hummed to himself as he sipped his tea and remembered how Luffy's definition of a pirate was fundamentally different than the world's definition. The young man had defined the life of a pirate as endless partying, dancing, drinking and having a merry good time with his crewmates and going on adventures. Sakazuki, ever the true believer in 'Absolute Justice', had harshly questioned whether or not Luffy's adventures including burning down town, killing innocent people, torturing people for treasure, laying waste to Marine ships and toppling the government.
Luffy, ever brave, even in the face of an intimidating person such as Sakazuki, had plainly stated that he had lived through a town being set on fire with innocent people being killed left, right and center and that he had no desire to see that happen to anyone else. He would never torture anyone, because that's just not right and he respected the Marines too much because they were protecting those that could not defend themselves. On the topic of the government he had stated if a government was detrimental to the well-being of the people it deserved to be toppled and replaced with a better one.
The Admiral had growled at the answers, holding his tongue as he had realized that every single counterpoint of the boy was honest and in line with 'Justice', even if it leaned more to 'Moral Justice' than 'Absolute Justice' to his chagrin.
From then on, the fiercest of the three Admirals had a grudging respect for the boy, even going so far as to train him. Kuzan and Borsalino also had a minor hand in the boy's training as well, the former working on his endurance, as Sakazuki had taken up his strength training, while Kizaru had taken on Luffy's speed training. It was funny to watch a kid trying to catch a man who could move at the speed of light.
But the way Luffy had defined being a pirate somewhat matched that of a man he once knew. A man who loved his crewmates so much that he would destroy anyone who dared to insult them, who partied hard into the night, filling the seas with the sounds of laughter and merriment, who desired above all else to be free to do as he please, as evidenced by his refusal to ally with 'Golden Lion' Shiki. He was fearful what that meant, as the life of that man, Gol D. Roger, was spent turning the world on its head and breaking all conventions. Even his death had shaken the foundations of the world, as he had revealed to the masses that if they wanted his treasure, they could have it so long as they found it at that place.
As his eyes scanned over the documents, he allowed himself to mull over that legendary treasure he spoke of, the One Piece. From what he knew personally, it was a dangerous artifact of some kind, capable of toppling the World Government itself and plunging the world into war if it were ever revealed. Sengoku knew it was not a weapon, because if it were then the Gorosei and Tenryūbito would not be so adamant about it being lost to history, as he heard whispers that the top dogs of the World Government were planning on reviving the ancient weapons in hopes of quelling the Golden Age of Piracy, even if it meant killing millions of innocent civilians in the pursuit of that goal, something he as Fleet Admiral wanted to avoid at all costs.
That left only one possibility, and the most logical of all: the One Piece was a Poneglyph detailing the truth of the Void Century, information so dangerous that, should it be revealed to the world, would topple the World Government, destroy the Gorosei and call for the heads of the Tenryūbito. It only made sense, as, after reading the After Action Report on the Ohara Incident, even mentioning the name of the kingdom the ancient twenty kingdoms, now known as the World Government and Tenryūbito, had fought and destroyed was warrant enough to be executed on the spot by order of the Gorosei. It made all the more sense why there was such a massive bounty on a child.
Nico Robin. The Demon Child of Ohara worth seventy-nine million Beri.
Though personally he had nothing against her, as a good soldier he had to follow orders, and those orders meant the death of the only survivor of the Ohara. From the few incident reports with her name in them, he had surmised that all she was doing was trying her best to survive in this unforgiving and harsh world. But for the last five years she had been laying low, nary a whisper reaching anyone's ears concerning her. He only hoped that she would stay hidden, away from the world and the hidden potential of the Poneglyphs and live out a secluded, yet happy, life in obscurity. But he knew with Luffy running around in the East Blue, and soon the Grand Line, as at the end of it was his dream, One Piece, he would eventually run into her and more than likely recruit her, and not because of her ability to read Poneglyphs.
No, Luffy would recruit her simply because he could see the good in people despite the shadows that rested upon his shoulders as evidenced by his kind nature.
Four months ago, he had seen Luffy packing his things for his yearly return to his home village to celebrate his birthday with those he loved. But the amount he had packed was more than usual, setting red flags off in his head when he saw that. He had questioned Luffy on whether or not he was deserting the Marines, to which Luffy had replied that he never was officially made a Marine. Before Sengoku could angrily retort, the young man had continued on.
"All of you have my utmost respect for what you do. And while I could have been a great Marine like all of you wanted me to be, I just can't see myself standing back and letting something like the Ohara Incident, Dressrosa Coup, Flevence Extermination or the Gray Terminal Fire happen. Every single one of you guys are all great people who follow what you believe in with all your being, something I can't fault." Luffy had this great looking of sorrow on his face as he picked up his bag and passed him. "But you follow the wrong people if you allow yourself to kill innocent civilians and tell yourself that it's all in the name of peace. Not only are you lying to yourself, but you're going back on your word."
"I hope you know what you're doing Straw Hat."
"I'm doing what I know to be right."
Sengoku had no chance to reply as Luffy had already disappeared. The following morning a dinghy was reported missing from the port, but as a storm had passed through that night it had been passed off as lost at sea due to someone tying the rope loosely the day before. The entire day after Luffy had left, the Fleet Admiral had considered Luffy's words, idly wondering why Luffy thought being a pirate was the right thing to do. But as he tried to dissect his words and motives and examine them closely, he had found himself coming up short on any comprehendible conclusion. Only Luffy understood what his real motivations were for being a pirate, because despite being inspired by 'Red Hair' Shanks to become a pirate, those beliefs were the foundation, and not the house of his reason, and the world would have to wait and see what his reasons truly were for being a pirate.
"Mmmm… Branch Seven-Seven… Commodore Pudding-Pudding reporting the arrest of all personnel of Branch One-Six on the charges of accepting bribes from 'The Saw' Arlong in order to suppress reports on the status of the Conomi Islands. Further information discovered reveals that Nezumi, upon taking command of the Branch One-Six, has been meeting monthly with Arlong in order to receive a three-million Beri bribe, mostly treasure from pirate ships and merchant vessels, for the last seven years after having mutinied against the previous base commander and executing him for not attempting to parlay with Arlong.
"The Conomi Islands have, as thus, been under the tyrannical rule of Arlong and his pirate crew, the Arlong Pirates, for eight long years due to the corruption of former Marine Captain Nezumi. Reports state that nearly a week before Vice-Admiral Garp had arrived, the island had been liberated by a pirate alliance between the Straw Hat Pirates and the New Cook Pirates. The Straw Hat Pirates are named thus far: Monkey D. Luffy, Nami, Alvida, Roronoa Zoro, Momotoya Kuina, Usopp, Sanji, Reiju, Johnny and Yosaku. Eye witness reports state that before the battle, Monkey D. Luffy apologized on behalf of the Marines for allowing this nightmare to continue and that they would be quickly freed." The aging Marine sighed before leaning back once more, munching on the last rice cracker and wondering where the world was going if a pirate was apologizing on behalf of the Marines and doing their job for them. He sighed once more before leaning forward and picking up the document, resuming his reading of the presumably long report.
"A day after the destruction of Arlong Park, base of the Arlong Pirates, former Captain Nezumi and a contingent of Marines had returned to the island intent on confiscating nearly one-hundred-million Beri, a cache of money gathered by the Conomi native Straw-Hat Pirate and former Arlong Pirate, Nami, with the intent on buying her village and mother's freedom, former Commander Bell-mère, by the 'urging' of Arlong to reset the money Nami had gathered. By doing so he would ensure that Nami would stay as a member of the crew and create sea charts for Arlong, who intended to use them to conquer East Blue." Smiling to himself, Sengoku could only think that Garp would have been proud of Luffy had he been a Marine, even though he still felt proud of him regardless. But as it stood, the Fleet Admiral could only outwardly show grudging respect, while feeling the same as Garp in some respects. He could only fathom how badly a war could have gone had Arlong conquered East Blue, not only because it was Garp's home, but Dragon's as well and the home of Shank's lover, which would have led to a war between the Arlong Pirates, Red Hair Pirates, Marines and the Revolutionary Army.
It was something that had surprised the hell out of Sengoku, learning that a Yonkō had a family in such a peaceful place. He had learned it from Garp, who had learned it from Luffy after he had blabbed about Rose looking like her red-headed father. While Garp had ranted about an 'adventuring no-good lad getting little Makino-chan pregnant and then running off', Sengoku had combed through intelligence reports, piecing together the route of 'Red Hair' Shanks had taken after the Roger Pirates had been disbanded. He had discovered with a ninety percent certainty that the girl Rose was his biological daughter, but had done nothing with the intelligence, realizing that a war with a Yonkō was the last thing the Marines needed at the moment, especially in East Blue. Sengoku could deal with the fallout from the World Government if that ever occurred, as he had grown disillusioned with the machinations and paranoia of those that stood above him, Kong being the only exception.
Deciding to lock those thoughts away once more, Sengoku turned his attention back to the report and read on. "Former Captain Nezumi and his contingent of Marines were summarily defeated by the Straw Hat Pirates and issued a threat that was to be delivered to Marine Headquarters." Sengoku drew out a long sigh as he could guess what Luffy had said. "Luffy, 'Straw Hat', stated, 'Should there ever be an island living under the tyranny of a pirate, be they a Shichibukai, or under the thumb of a corrupt government official that we come across, I promise that I will kick the ever living hell out of those responsible. And if there any cover ups, they will be blown to smithereens as I will personally see to it that the truth is spread to every corner of the world.' This threat should be taken seriously, as 'Straw Hat' Luffy has already liberated three towns, an entire island chain, and defeated numerous pirate crews and two Marine Captains in order to honor this threat."
Luffy was nothing but a headache, before when they were training him in hopes of turning him into another Marine hero like his grandfather, and now when he was a pirate following what he knew in his heart to be right. He would take the world by storm the moment he began to travel the Grand Line, what with his dream of finding the One Piece and being the freest person in the world, and because of that Sengoku was going to formally increase Luffy's bounty, and his crew's as well, from seventy-five million Beri to two-hundred million Beri, something that should warn the world of the threat Luffy potentially posed.
There would also be standing orders given to all Marines to only engage the Straw Hat Pirates under the direst of circumstances, with only those ranked Captain and higher allowed to engage the young man, and only if they were backed by three other captains. It was not that Sengoku was giving him preferential treatment due to their history, but rather due to the fact the Marines could use a powerful asset like him and his crew. They could gain the alliance of numerous other people, pirates, civilians and nobles alike, with his abnormally high charisma, something the Marines were found wanting.
"Vice-Admiral Garp arrived in the Conomi Islands and formally bowed before the people of the islands as an apology for the Marines' negligence." Sengoku scrubbed his face once more and was at least thankful that this was not broadcasted worldwide, as the image of the Marines would further be tarnished as a result due to pirates being the heroes rather than the Marines.
He would need to call in the other Admirals to give them a briefing on the situation concerning Luffy, as they were some of the few people who knew the pirate's abilities. Sengoku could only imagine how massive the headache that would follow, as he could clearly predict how Sakazuki would react. Of all of the Marines, that man worried him the most, as he went to the extremes to see 'Absolute Justice' done.
Three hours after the meeting between the Fleet Admiral and Admirals a meeting was being held by all of the available Vice-Admirals. The exceptions were of course Garp as he was out in East Blue tracking down his grandson, the unknown topic of this particular meeting, and all other Vice-Admirals administering the other Marine Branches or the Grand Line Branches. Over twenty of the officers were gathered, waiting for the senior Vice-Admiral to begin the meeting.
"Good afternoon gentlemen and ladies," began a man in a purple suit with white pin-stripes, the Marine coat adorned on his shoulders. His moderately sized moustache twitched slightly as observed all of his fellow Vice-Admirals, men and women he had served alongside with over thirty-odd years. And in those thirty-odd years they had seen the fall of the man known world over as 'The Pirate King'. Now the winds of the world were stirring once more, all because of the ambitions of one young man.
"I have just received word down from up top that a new pirate and his crew have begun to cause a ruckus in the East Blue. Now this would kick up such a fuss if not for the fact that the captain leading this crew were none other than Monkey D. Luffy."
A deep murmuring spread throughout the room as all of the Vice-Admirals were indeed disturbed by this turn of events. They had all, at one time or another, met the young man and had grown to somewhat respect him for his sense of morality that so many in the world at large were lacking. They had all waved off his declarations about becoming the Pirate King, believing that Garp would pound some sense into the child or even one of the Admirals themselves. How wrong that turned out to be.
"After his altercation with former Captain Morgan of Marine Branch One-Five-Three, 'Straw-Hat' Luffy has trapesed across a fair bit of the East Blue defeating pirate crews and Marine whenever they had crossed his path. There have thankfully been no Marine fatalities thus far." A few of the Vice-Admirals grinned at that, seeing that Luffy despite becoming a pirate still had a fair bit of respect for the life of Marine personnel.
"He has currently defeated Buggy 'The Clown', worth fifteen million Beri at Orange Town, saving the inhabitants. Less a week later he had faced off against the thought to be deceased Kuro 'Thousand-Plans' a notorious pirate with a former bounty worth sixteen million Beri. Thwarting the man had thus stopped the assassination attempt of the Albatross heiress Kaya, and the destruction of Syrup Village. A report was soon filed by Vice-Commander Ensign Samuels under Commander Lieutenant Fullbody of Branch Three-Four a week later detailing a minor engagement with the Straw-Hat Pirates that ended with his ship being disabled allowing the pirate crew to make a hasty escape. The ammunition used on them has been salvaged and is now being reverse engineered by Doctor Vegapunk. Further details are in your provided dossier." Momonga paused for a moment for a few of the interested Vice-Admirals read over the information before continuing.
"A little over a week had passed since the events of Syrup Village and 'Straw-Hat' has given the bounty of seventy-five million Beri, an unprecedented starting amount for a rookie pirate, by Vice-Admiral Garp. Now we all know why this bounty was given, as we are all well aware of the strength that Monkey D. Luffy possesses. That strength has passed to his subordinates as the next pirate, 'Foul-Play' Krieg, worth seventeen million Beri, was defeated not by Straw-Hat Luffy, but by the crew's Navigator, Nami of Cocoyashi.
"Onto the matter of Cocoyashi… this is a bit of a stain upon our honor as it was later revealed that one of our own, a Captain Nezumi who is now waiting a full military tribunal, was siding with 'The Saw' Arlong, while taking bribes worth three-million Beri a month to suppress the information on the situation of Cocoyashi. 'The Saw', while having a twenty-million Beri bounty, has been reevaluated at having a thirty-five million due to the numerous reports of attacks on Marine and Merchant ships being attacked in the vicinity of the Conomi Islands. Arlong and his entire fishman crew were defeated under the combined forces of the Straw Hat Pirates and the New Cook Pirates, but it was way they were defeated by the Straw Hat Pirates that has earned the entire crew a bounty each, with Straw Hat's being given increase by over two-hundred percent."
"Two-hundred Million Beri, eh?" Yamakaji inquired around his cigar. "That's unheard of for a rookie getting that much after not even being out on the sea for a month."
"While it is a little unprecedented, 'Straw-Hat' Luffy's threat assessment warrants the bounty. The strength of each member is enough to warrant their own as well, seeing as each has trained under 'Straw-Hat'."
Attached to the dossier were ten wanted posters, one for Luffy and Nami and the rest for the crew of the Straw Hat Pirates and for another pirate. The captain and navigator's wanted poster was that of them partying hard in Orange Town, 'Only Alive' plastered below it and award for two-hundred million Beri for 'Straw-Hat' Monkey D. Luffy and seventy-five-million for 'Cat-Burglar' Nami. Each of the posters said 'Only Alive' as well, signifying the desire of the higher ups to detain the Straw Hat Pirates.
'Pirate Hunter' Roronoa Zoro's picture was of him snoring lightly, a bubble emerging from his nose, his bounty being worth ninety-million Beri. 'Blade Goddess' Momotoya Kunia's picture was of her laughing merrily with a mug in her hand, her bounty worth eighty-million Beri. 'The Mace' Alvida's picture was of her gazing serenely at the sunset, her bounty worth seventy-seven million Beri. 'Black Leg' Sanji's picture was of him with hearts in his eyes chasing after some village girls, his bounty being eighty-five million Beri. 'Pink Fang' Reiju was of her laughing behind her hand at a joke, her bounty matching that of Kuina's. 'Sword of the Left' Johnny was laughing merrily, his bounty matching 'Sword of the Right' Yosaku's thirty-million Beri. Finally, there was a picture of a long-nosed fellow laughing merrily, his picture being the missing piece to Johnny and Yosaku's. 'Sniper King' Usopp's bounty was worth seventy-million Beri.
"Oi, oi!" Vice-Admiral Dalmatian noted with a raised brow. "Should we really be giving every single one of these pirates a bounty this high for their first? This is a little unheard of you know?"
"Seeing as how their captain could give Marines below the rank of Vice-Admiral a problem, it is likely assumed that each member of the 'Straw-Hat' Pirates has enough training to give even a captain difficulty under 'Straw-Hat' Luffy's tutelage," Momonga replied. "Fleet Admiral Sengoku has thusly advised that 'Straw-Hat' Luffy be dealt with only by those ranked Captain and higher, with Captains advised to engage him in a group of four."
"Who's this last guy?" Onigumo asked as he gazed at the picture of a tanned man in a grey jacket wielding two tonfa.
"That is 'Devil Man' Gin, former First Mate of the Krieg Pirates, and Captain of the New Cook Pirates. We've received a report that Gin has allied himself with 'Straw-Hat', flying the 'Straw-Hat' Jolly Roger above their own Jolly Roger, and that he intends to sail with 'Straw-Hat' for as long as he's able to. He wasn't a credible threat in the past but being able to take down fishmen has earned him a twenty-five million bounty. We may need to keep an eye out on them."
"To think that Monkey D. Luffy has already caused a ruckus despite being out on the seas for a month," Tsuru muttered as she stared at the laughing couple on the poster. 'Garp, what exactly are you up to, chasing your grandson?'
"If he's attempting to journey on the Grand Line then we all know he's going to make port at Loguetown." A number of the other Vice-Admirals nodded their heads, all knowing the significance the island held for pirates. Not only was it the place for all ships to replenish if they were to make it to the Grand Line it was also the place Gold Roger was born and the same place he was executed.
"Who's stationed there right now?" Doberman, a heavily scarred man with tanned skin, asked, hoping that whoever was stationed at the Polestar Island Branch could deal with 'Straw-Hat' properly.
"Captain Smoker and Master Chief Petty Officer Tashigi head up the branch there, they're under my jurisdiction," Cancer, a blonde man with glasses and a scar over his left eye, replied. "I'll send them reinforcements from one of the other bases post-haste."
"I believe it's already too late for that," Momonga interjected. "Reports have stated that the Straw-Hat Pirates are only a few days away from Loguetown. Your main branch is too far away to mobilize proper reinforcements. What you need to do is notify them of containing the damage, not stopping 'Straw-Hat'. Monkey D. Luffy is not violent and won't harm civilians if he can help it, so instead put him on alert."
"Yes sir!" Cancer replied with a salute.
"I'm not sure if any of you felt it or not, but the winds of the world are stirring once more, just as they did a little less than thirty years ago when Gold Roger was alive. The Marines are the guardians of peace in the world, not some upstart pirate. We shall show him what the Marines are made of!"
"You increased the price of your paper again?!" Nami exclaimed as she stared at the quaking news-coo. "Whatever, just know that if they increase any higher, I'm not buying." She then tossed the bird a fifteen Beri coin and snatched the newspaper from bird before it flew off.
"What's wrong with the price if it's just one or two?" Usopp questioned from his spot near the rear mast. He was currently fiddling with his different shots, working on the gun powder ratio of several at once.
"It piles up after a while if you buy a newspaper once a day," the orangette complained as she began to peruse the paper.
"Why do you care? You don't need to save up one-hundred million Beri anymore."
"Now that I don't, all the money I have is my own. I'm never going to be broke again and now I can dress however fancy I want!" she exclaimed happily as she laid down on her recliner next to a sunbathing Alvida. The two of them smiled a bit when they saw a mikan offered to each of them in an extended hand courtesy of Luffy.
"Yeesh so stingy," Usopp muttered irritably as he began working on a new type of fiery-spice shot.
"The world really is becoming turbulent," Nami commented as she read the world news. "There's been a coup in Vira. The Revolutionary Army sure is becoming a hit."
"Course they are," Luffy exclaimed once he landed on the railing behind Nami and Alvida, a mikan in his hand. His fingers quickly peeled the skin off and he popped a slice into his mouth, reveling in the flavor. "Dragon and the others represent hope for those who are powerless to stop those above them from abusing them with their power. Of course, it helps that each of the Seas has a different Revolutionary Commander to help out with regional problems."
"It seems there's some trouble brewing in West Blue." Before Nami could comment further, a number of papers fell from the newspaper and scattered about on the rear deck.
"Eh? What're those? Flyers?" Luffy inquired as he jumped off the railing and made his way to the pile of papers. A few moments passed as Luffy held one of them in his hand, his eyes focused on the picture. After a while Usopp, Nami and Alvida grew concerned as they had not heard a peep from their Captain.
"WOOOHOOO! I got a bounty worth two-hundred million now!" Luffy shouted loud enough to wake Zoro up, interrupt Kuina in her training with Johnny and Yosaku and cause Reiju and Zoro to storm out of the kitchen in alarm.
"WHAAAAAAT!" Nami roared as she ripped the wanted poster from her lover's hand. She fell into his waiting hands in a dead faint after seeing that her own was seventy-five million Beri. Usopp freaked out as well once he saw his own bounty, Johnny and Yosaku freaking out only a few levels less in intensity.
Zoro and Sanji had of course started to argue between the two of them about their bounties, Reiju and Kuina simply laughing in delight as they saw the sparks fly between the two competitive men. Alvida all the while smiled as she noted her bounty before returning to her sunbathing, the wanted poster now lying on the table between the two recliners.
"Hey, Gin's got one too!" Luffy exclaimed once Nami returned to the land of consciousness. Luffy soon rocketed over to where the Flaming Molotov was the flyer held firmly in his grasp. He could only imagine the look on his subordinate's face once he found out he now had a bounty worth more than his former captain's.
"To Luffy!"
"To Luffy!" another bar goer in Party's Bar in Foosha Village on Dawn Island shouted as he raised his glass to toast the other resident.
"For finally getting his first bounty and finding love!"
"For finally getting his first bounty and finding love!" was repeated.
"CHEERS!"
"Those damn idiots," Woop Slap muttered to himself as he nursed his own drink.
"Oh, lighten up Woop. Just be proud he's finally begun to take the first step of his dreams. And it's nice that he's found such a pretty girl." A dark aura soon fell over her and Rouge who was there helping her behind the bar. "But if she so much as breaks Luffy's heart, she'll have me to deal with."
"Leave a bit for me, Makino-chan," Rouge replied as a metal mug was suddenly crushed in her vice like hand.
After shuddering in fright for a quick moment, Woop stared into his whiskey and muttered, "His dreams or his fate."
"Dear, look at the news." Koshiro peeled one eye open, gazing at his wife. She had interrupted his daily meditation, something she usually never did. Whatever it was must have been important enough to break his daily routine.
"Let's see," the Momotoya patriarch murmured as he received the paper from his wife. At first, he had to rub his eyes, unbelieving of the news he had seen. He soon turned pale when the reality set in.
"Roronoa Zoro! You bastard! I told you to keep my little flower out of trouble! I'll flay you alive the next time I see you!"
A few moments later a crowd of people could be heard making their way quickly to this end of his compound.
"Sensei is it true that you trained Roronoa Zoro?!" one of his students asked.
"Could you train us like him?!"
"Can I be as strong as Kuina-senpai?"
"Teach us Santōryū too!"
"Utter the name Roronoa Zoro in my presence again and I'll make you do two-thousand katas for the next month!" Koshiro roared as he grabbed his bokken and chased after the screaming, terrified students.
"To think that 'Straw-Hat' was such a dangerous person to warrant a bounty this high and special engagement recommendations," recently promoted Captain Ripper muttered to himself as he regarded the wanted poster of Monkey D. Luffy and Nami.
"It's a miracle that the damage that occurred during his fight with Morgan was focused on such a small scale," his second-in-command Lieutenant Commander Rokkaku commented as he sat down beside his commander at Food Foo. "It could have been much worse. And to see that entire crew now wanted with such massive bounties, and in the East Blue no less, shows how much of a threat the higher ups see them as."
"Oh, is that a picture of Luffy-nii and Nami-nee?" Rika asked when she came over to take down the two Marines orders. "Oh! They look so happy together!"
"There's wanted posters of Zoro and Kuina if you wanna see them too, Rika," Ripper offered as he pulled out two more wanted posters.
"Thank you very much!"
"The savior of our town is a wanted man!"
"Three cheers to the Straw Hat Pirates!"
"To the saviors of Orange Town!"
"To the bane of the Buggy Pirates!"
"Mistress Kaya!" The young blonde looked up from her books, wiping the exhaustion from her eyes. She had been up since dawn and had been studying the day away, even missing brunch. Her study session was interrupted by the excited shouting of her butler.
"What is it Merry?" she asked tiredly once he had made it into her study.
"It's about Usopp!"
"Is he fine? Is he alive! Please tell my love will end like this!"
"No, no! Nothing like that my lady!"
"Then what is it?!"
"Look! Usopp has a bounty now!" he explained as pulled out Usopp's bounty poster. "His friends as wel-"
"Usopp's finally begun the first steps to his dreams! I can't keep dragging my feet like this! I want him to be proud when he comes back home! Yosh, now I'm all fired up!"
"I shall support you as well Lady Kaya!"
"You can support me by getting out of my study!"
"Zeff, big news!"
"If it's that brat's and Reiju's bounties, then I already know," Zeff grumbled as he turned the sea bream over.
"Don't you wanna know how big they are though?!"
"Don't care."
"Zeff this their crowning moment!"
"If you have time to blab, then you time to cook!"
"Yessir!"
'Sanji, Reiju… Though you aren't my children by birth, I will always regard you as my own. You do me proud by stepping outside the place the two of you have called home. Carry out our dreams, my son and daughter.'
"Order up!" Zeff shouted as he plated the sea bream for the Red-Wine Demi-glazed Sea Bream Pilaf.
"Like grandfather, like grandson," Bell-mère muttered as she set down the wanted poster onto her kitchen table. "Always getting into some type of trouble one way or another."
"From the time they spent here," her other daughter, Nojiko, began as she picked up the poster and gazed at the picture, "I've never seen my little sister happier."
"Well of course, despite Garp being a complete lunkhead at times, he was always the life of the room, bringing a break to the monotony many of us used to have in the Marine Branches. He may be a high-ranking officer, but he's always done things at his own pace, never one to allow someone to dictate the path he walks in life." The former marine smirked before looking out the open window, the sight of the never-ending seas reminding her of the dreams of people, or more specifically pirates. "In truth, Garp's the closest to being a pirate in the Marines."
"How so?"
"For some people or more specifically Monkey D. Luffy, being a pirate means being free in the most literal of senses. They don't have to listen to anyone, and if they do it's only on a whim. Their reasons are their own and they don't have to explain themselves to others why they do the things they do. Of course, you and I know that Luffy has standards he follows, that's why despite him being a pirate, I can't help but respect him for being him."
"That's still not gonna stop you from kicking his ass if he makes Nami cry though is it?" Nojiko replied with a smirk as she leaned against the windowsill, the sea breeze flowing through her hair.
"Damn right it isn't," her mother responded with a matching smirk as she polished her old service rifle.
"Hey! Pops! You'll never guess what happened!"
"What's got Ace so riled up?" Jozu questioned as he bit into a piece of mutton.
"A rookie crew in East Blue got bounties for themselves and when he saw the captain and navigator's wanted bounty he flipped," Marco answered before shrugging.
"East Blue eh?" another broad-shouldered man hummed as he twirled his moustache. "Their bounties can't be worth so much, can they? I mean they are from the weakest sea after all."
"Oi, oi! Ace is from there too you know!" Blenheim interrupted. "And don't forget that Gold Roger was born there too!"
"They're the exception, not the rule," Vista replied before clicking the back of his front teeth with his tongue.
"Well apparently each of them has a bounty of their own, and this is a small crew of ten." It was unheard of for a pirate crew that small to last unless they were incredibly powerful. The fact that each of them had a bounty meant they were a force to be reckoned with.
Marco then pulled out the bounty posters for all of the Straw Hat Pirates, except for the pilfered poster of 'Straw Hat' Monkey D. Luffy and 'Cat Burglar' Nami. "All together their bounty totals at a whopping eight-hundred-seventeen million Beri."
"That much!" Izo gapped from his seat beside Marco. "How much is their captain worth?!"
"Two-hundred million Beri," Marco remarked with a bored tone as he peered over the wanted posters, his eyes zeroing in on one particular poster. 'Why does that long nose kid look familiar?'
"How long's the kid been at sea?" Jozu asked as he looked over the posters as well.
"The crew's been sailing for little over a month now from what the rumors say."
"This much for a rookie crew though?!"
"Oi, oi. That's way too much for some crew out of East Blue that hasn't even left that sea yet," Blenheim exclaimed as he guzzled down a half-pint of rum.
"Whatever the reason, Marine Headquarters is keeping a very watchful eye over the actions of the Straw Hat Pirates. Especially if they want to capture Monkey D. Luffy alive."
"See Pops! I told you my little brother was gonna make it big! He's even found himself a hot dame too!" Ace proclaimed as he shoved the bounty poster in his adoptive father's face.
Edward Newgate grunted a little bit as he snatched the paper from his son, ignoring the blabbering the kid was doing over his little brother. While he could sympathize a little with Ace feeling proud for his sworn brother, there was only so far pride could go before it morphed into something dangerous. Blocking out that thought, Whitebeard turned his attention to the picture of the couple with their arms over the other's shoulder and mugs of alcohol in the other and faces frozen in jubilant celebration.
He first focused on the young man who was more than likely Monkey D. Luffy. The brat was more than likely the grandson of Garp since that surname was not commonplace. That was more than enough for Whitebeard to look a little closer into the young man. But it was that Straw Hat that drew his attention. Over two and a half decades ago he had last seen that on the head of that Red Hair brat. A decade before that, when he began to sail the seas, he had seen that hat upon the head of the only person he ever considered a rival, and dare he think, a friend. To think that same hat had made it onto another pirate dreaming of finding One Piece and becoming the Pirate King, at least according to Ace.
The girl beside him drew a somewhat cursory glance from the Yonkō, only because for a split second he had seen another young couple take their place for but only a moment. Of course, one of them was executed about some twenty odd years ago. The other, well, he was not truly sure what had happened to Portgas D. Rouge.
In any case, Edward Newgate could feel the winds of change already stirring once again. About a month ago he had felt the winds of the world, especially those in Paradise and the New World, stirring more turbulently. When he was much younger, he had felt this same feeling and that feeling had lead him to coming across Gol D. Roger. Whitebeard smiled to himself before laughing out loud, believing he had more than likely found the man that would inherit the Will of D.
"Gurarara!"
"What the hells so funny Old Man?!"
"Huh? What's that ship?"
"Ah! It's Dracule Mihawk's ship!"
"Quick, someone notify Captain Shanks!"
One of the lowly crewmembers quickly scurried off, doing his utmost not to stumble like the hungover pirate he was. Generally, whenever Hawk-Eye dropped in, it was either to fight with the Yonkō, though that was becoming rarer these days, or just exchange stories between the two of them. Hopefully it was the latter, as the captain was currently a little hungover right now, even if that meant absolutely nothing to two hardened combatants such as Shanks and Mihawk.
"C-Captain!"
"What is it? Can't you see that I'm in a bad mood," the redheaded man growled as he held his head in his head.
"Don't you Red Hair Pirates do anything other than party the days away?" a monotone voice inquired.
"Not when one of our own has set sail on his own, we don't!" Lucky Roo replied as he tore into a piece of ham on the bone.
"Monkey D. Luffy set sail a month ago."
"And it's been a month long of on and off partying!" came Shanks groggy comeback.
"Well now you have more reason to party," Mihawk stated as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out nine wanted posters. Two of them he then tossed, one to Shanks, the other to Yasopp. "You'll never believe who caught the attention of the World Government and the Marines."
"Luffy…" Shanks muttered with a sentimental smile on his face, glad that Luffy had finally begun the first steps of his journey to find the One Piece. 'And just like Captain Roger he found a spitfire. Let's hope their story doesn't end in heartbreak too.'
'So, you've found you sea legs my boy,' Yasopp thought with a melancholy smile on his face as he reclined on his side. He was glad that his son was doing well for himself and had made friends. While a part of him was depressed about the news that his wife had died, there had been nothing he could have done at the time due to all of the Red Hair Pirates dealing with Kaidō and Big Mom's antics in the New World. Yasopp could at least take solace in the fact that his son was now walking beside the person who would more than likely find the One Piece.
"Now that you're here Hawk-Eye, I can't very well let you leave now."
"I suppose I can kill a day or two partying with you damned louts." Mihawk then sat down right beside Mihawk and accepted the offered drink. He stared at it, then Shanks as the man kept pouring more and more into it until it was nearly filled to spilling. "Rose and Makino send their regards and are wondering when you're going to drop in again."
"Ah! That's right! Rose-chan's birthday is soon! Sorry guys, I gotta beat it!" Shanks shouted as he jumped up off his stump and made his way to the shore to grab a rowboat.
"We have a problem."
"What is it?"
"Not what, but whom."
"Who's the problem Kalifa?"
"It's Monkey D. Luffy."
"Who?"
"He was a trainee at Marine Headquarters for a few years. They planned to commission as an Ensign the moment he turned eighteen."
"So?"
"Not only did Vice-Admiral Garp, his grandfather, train him, but so did the three admirals and a number of Vice-Admirals. He's been trained in the Rokushiki and has a very firm grasp on both Busō-shoku no Haki and Kenbun-shoku no Haki.
"This could become a problem for us in the future if he crosses our path… Or it may be a boon if we play our cards right."
"Whatever the case, we must remember our goal here is to recover the blueprints for Pluton."
"For Justice."
"For Justice."
"So, we're heading to Loguetown next right? The town of beginnings and endings?" Alvida asked as she walked to the fore of the Going Merry.
"The birthplace of Gol D. Roger and the place where he was executed and ushered in the Golden Age of Pirates. It's also the last major port town and major resupply point for everyone in East Blue if they want to reach the Grand Line."
"You seem pretty excited Luffy," Nami remarked from behind the figurehead where her captain was currently splayed out on.
"Of course! It's like praying at a shrine before a big event! I'm gonna kick off my adventure to the Grand Line with a pilgrimage to the Execution Stand."
"What's a shrine?" Alvida asked as she turned to Nami. The orangette shrugged her shoulders, having never heard of such a thing before.
"It's a type of temple that the people of some cultures go to pray to deities for their grace and guide them to success, be it in business, love or life," their captain idly explained as he covered his face with his hat and lounged on ram's head.
"Anymore interesting tidbits of random information?" his navigator groused with a sigh.
"Akuma no Mi taste like crap. The Gomu-Gomu no Mi I ate tasted like someone threw up on a rotten piece of meat and crapped on it."
Both Nami and Alvida made a face at that, the two of them covering their mouths and greening quite a bit. Though Alvida had eaten an Akuma no Mi, that did not mean she needed to relive taste once more, even if hers tasted of a different raunchy variety.
"Stop with the stupid shit already!" Nami shouted as smacked Luffy with her Clima-Tact. Their helmswoman merely bopped him on the head with the butt of her mace as retribution. Their captain all the while laughed merrily at the love taps he received.
"To Loguetown!"
久しぶりだな!
