Good to see you again Ladies and Gents, before we start I want to talk about the One Piece Global Top 100 popularity poll.
Holy crap, Luffy, Zoro, and Nami ranked 1st 2nd and 3rd respectively. For some reason that makes me happy. Woot! Anyways, here's the third chapter for this fic. Hope you enjoy.
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. If I did, it wouldn't sell as much.
Chapter 3: The Clown and the Jester
"I want to take on Arlong this time around"
Both Zoro and Luffy stared at her curiously.
"I want to have some sort of closure with what he did to my village. In my own terms" She added. She rests her chin on her hand as she leans on the boat's sides, staring at the vast ocean. "And also, I realized that if we want to protect our crewmates, we need to be stronger this time around. And beating Arlong is one way to measure my progress"
Zoro laughed at this while Luffy continues eating.
"You know Nami, you've grown already. I mean, you're already talking about the person who hurt you as a kid without any problems" Luffy added.
"I did learn how to think about our enemies from the best. It still hurts, but it's what made me...well, me"
"Do you want to go to Cocoyashi right now?" Luffy asked.
Nami shakes her head. "No. If nothing too drastic changes in this timeline, Arlong wouldn't make any sort of moves until he finds out that I'm close to 100 million Beri. And besides, it's a few days away to Cocoyashi from where we are right now. By the time we arrive and finish our business there, Usopp and Sanji's places might be invaded by pirates by the time we arrive. I'd rather not take any chances"
The two simply nods in agreement.
"So, when do you want to start training?"
"Now" Nami says with a confident yet eager smile.
Zoro and Luffy starts training Nami during their relatively uneventful journey, only interrupted by the occasional peeks at the compass to make sure that they're not deviating from their course. The training consisted of punching the scabbard of one of Zoro's swords imbued with the Color of Armaments. A few hours later, Zoro decided to stop the training right here, seeing that the amount of progress they're making compared to Nami's exhaustion is a bit too much. She slumps down onto the wall of their boats sleeping room while shaking her hands to alleviate the throbbing numbness in her knuckles.
"Don't worry about it. It's a bit of a slow process at the start."
"Yeah, I can see that. It's still a bit irritating though." Nami grumbled.
A few seconds later, Luffy spots a boat heading their way. Nami noted that this was three of Buggy's pirates whose ship and treasure she stole. At least this time, she won't need to do that. Well, the "stealing the ship" part at least.
The strangers stop beside their boat before pulling their swords out.
"This is a robbery! Hand over your valuables or we'll kill you!" one of them threatened. It did not end well at all.
After some physical convincing, the three robbers ended up with a few bruises and bumps from their failed attempt. "We're really sorry. We didn't know that the pirate hunter is sailing with you" they said apologetically.
"Oh it's fine. Though as fair compensation, we'll take your treasure now. Hope you don't mind" Nami said mischievously.
"B-But, that's our-!" A glare from Zoro immediately killed whatever protest they had in mind. With their newly gained loot on board, the three continued to sail towards Orange town, leaving the three disappointed robbers. The three arrive on the island a few hours after their encounter.
"Like last time, I'll let you two deal with them while I sneak to their treasure room. This time, I'll take all of it"
"Oi oi oi, I thought you wanted to train your Color of Armaments? Shouldn't you help us?"
"Money first, Haki later~" Nami winks at Zoro which made Luffy laugh.
The group started walking further into the city. They notice that there weren't any pirates around. Luffy mentions that maybe the reason why there aren't any pirates this time was that they're not busy chasing a certain thief stealing their map. They walked for a while before they come across a familiar white dog. The dog started growling at first. But as they approached closer, the dog started barking loudly.
Luffy raises both his arms to his side to try and pacify the dog. "Don't worry, we're not gonna do anything to you"
"Then what are you planning to do then?"
They turn their heads to the source of the voice. They see an old man wearing cheap armor while gripping his spear tightly with his two hands. They remember that this is Orange Town's mayor.
"Are you three pirates?" The old man asks.
"Yeah" Luffy said without hesitation.
Upon hearing this, the old man adopts a fighting stance and points the spear towards them. "What are you doing here? Are you robbing this place too?!"
"Oh no. We just sailed here because we want to buy some supplies for our trip. We were wondering why no one was around" Nami answered.
"There's no one here. The residents already moved away since that damn Buggy attacked this village"
"I see..." Luffy turns his head to look at the dog. "Is this dog lost or something?"
"No. That dog's name is Shushu. He's guarding his master's shop" The mayor said bitterly.
The mayor proceeded to tell the story of this village and the story about Shushu and his owner. Although Nami and Luffy already heard the story, they still feel a certain admiration for this pet. However, this is Zoro's first time hearing this. He gained a strange sense of respect for the dog that in the previous timeline he only found to be weird.
After finishing the man's story, Luffy slammed his fists together. "Yosh, I'll definitely kick Buggy's ass for you, old man."
"What? But why" The mayor was bewildered at how willing these kids are to fight him.
"Your story made me want to kick that clown's ass" Luffy simply answered.
With a newfound resolve, the mayor puts one of his fists on his chest. "Then allow me to fight with you! I'm this town's mayor. It's my job to protect this village"
"Rejected" The Strawhats said monotonously, forming an "X" with their arms which annoyed the mayor.
"Don't worry, We'll deal with them!" With a confident shout, Luffy, Zoro, and Nami starts heading to Buggy's base of operations.
-xxxxx-
"Drink up you flashy bastards! This is a great day for the Buggy pirates!"
Not just a great day but a great week in total, buggy thought. He invaded an island and took all their possessions, he has a map of an island in the Grand Line that contains treasure, and he also has a weapon that strikes fear in to the hearts of many. The Buggy pirates deserve this large celebration.
"It wouldn't take long before I catch up to that bastard Shanks. Soon, the entire world will know who Buggy the Clown is" He mumbles to himself.
His musings were broken when he spots one of his men running towards him looking like he's seen a monster.
"B-Buggy-sama! He's..! Someone's gonna...!" the man wasn't able to continue his ramblings from the exhaustion of running very fast.
"What is it!?"
"The pirate hunter is-!"
The celebration was interrupted when the gate to the base was seemingly destroyed, erupting in a cloud of dust and smoke from the debris.
"Couldn't we just come in without destroying things?"
"But it's the quickest way inside"
Voices can be heard inside the smoke. Once it clears out, the Buggy Pirates can see two individuals standing. One was wearing a straw hat with a goofy grin, the other was-
"T-The Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro!" the pirates stepped back away in fear.
"Heh. So the pirate hunter has come for my head?"
"Not interested"
"Oh no, that's not how it works you flashy bastard. You come here and destroy my property, so I need to make an example out of you. And killing you here would make me famous!"
"Oi big nose! I came here to kick your ass!"
The pirates gaped at the insult casually said by the boy with the straw hat. They slowly turn to Buggy and sees that he was pissed off at the insult.
"Who did you call big nose, you damned punk?!"
"Who else looks like they have a tomato for a nose, big nose?"
Buggy grits his teeth before smiling with a glare directed at the two. "You think this is funny punk? I'll kill you both. Ready the Buggy Special Cannon!"
From a balcony, a group of pirates slowly turns the cannon and aims it at Luffy and Zoro. The rest of the pirates started laughing. However, there are some who are surprised that the two doesn't look scared at all.
Luffy sighs, adjusting his straw hat. "I wish Nami would be here. A demonstration would definitely help her training"
"Well, she's got something to do anyways" Zoro shrugs.
"Fire!"
The pirates manning the cannon lights up the fuse. The cannon fires moments later, but instead of hitting the two and exploding, Luffy simply punches the cannonball upward. It explodes a few seconds later above the city which shocks everyone watching.
"H-He just punched Buggy-sama's special cannonball..." one of them said
While the rest were too surprised to move, Buggy knew exactly what happened. He's seen this during his time sailing with the pirate king.
This boy used the Color of Armaments to coat his arm.
Clenching his fists, he orders the rest of his men aside from his officers to attack the pair. Luffy proceeded to stretch his leg which surprises everyone further, before swinging it across like a whip.
"He's also eaten a devil fruit like Buggy-sama..."
This infuriated Buggy further. "Mohji, Cabaji, kill them both!"
Thinking that he was weaker despite the feats he displayed, Buggy's two officers decided to attack Luffy. They were stopped however by Zoro, who was blocking each of them with one sword each.
"Don't interrupt my captain" this sent a shiver down their spines. Even Richi who is a lion was scared.
"Reload the cannon! Fire at them again!" Buggy orders. However, he notices the lack of the sound of cannonballs being loaded. He turns his attention to the cannon only to see an orange haired girl sitting on the balcony while flashing her tongue out as if to mock him some more. He can see that the men manning the cannon were knocked out and a huge sack of what seem to be jewelries is present behind her.
"Give me back my treasure you flashy bitch!" Buggy sends a detached hand holding a knife towards the woman. The hand stopped midair however as Luffy kicks Buggy in his crotch, making everyone flinch including Nami.
"Your opponent is me!" Luffy shouted.
Meanwhile, Zoro keept Mohji and Cabaji at bay without flinching. The two disengage from him, trying to look for an opening. It seems as though the swordsman is not taking them seriously.
"You dare mock us, Pirate Hunter?" Cabaji asks.
"No. I'm simply stopping you from interfering with my captain's fight."
"Eh? So you joined a pirate crew. Why, are those bounties not enough to feed you?" Mohji tries to mock Zoro but to no avail, refusing to answer the lion tamer.
"I'll skewer you with my blade"
"Richie, crush him!"
Zoro decided that he needed to put an end to this nonsense. Lowering his two swords to his sides, Cabaji and Mohji sees this as an opportunity to attack.
"Nitoryu"
The two were closing in on Zoro, the unicyclist swinging his sword down to his neck while the large lion is about to slam his paw down on top of him. The pirates around them are sure that even the might of the pirate hunter is no match for two of Buggy's officers.
"Hawk Wave!"
The attack dealt two slashes on Cabaji and Mohji that draws blood and renders them unconscious. Buggy grits his teeth at the sight of his two officers being defeated in one hit. He barely registers the straw hatted boy stretching his arms far behind until he hears him shout.
"I'm going to send you flying, big nose! Gomu Gomu no...Bazooka!"
The rubber man's attack was too fast for Buggy to dodge, even with his devil fruit ability. It hits him in the gut which sends him flying away from the island. The remaining pirates who were still conscious took a step back from the shock of seeing their powerful members defeated so easily. Luffy decided to help the town some more by making it easier to arrest these people. He adjusts his hat and releases a small pulse of Conqueror's Haki. For the pirates, the last thing they felt was a sudden shock and numbness before their vision darkens.
The mayor arrives a bit too late. The first thing he sees is that the entirety of Buggy's crew passed out and that the only people left standing are the three strangers he met earlier.
"Geez you two. You never know how to hold back, do you?" The woman said.
"It's alright Nami. At least the town can easily call the marines and take these guys away"
The mayor swallows the lump on his throat. "You beat them..."
The three looks at the mayor. Luffy flashes him a wide smile while waving at him. "Oh hey, old mayor man. I promised to beat them up for you and Shushu."
"You can call the marines and inform them that the Buggy pirates are unconscious. Though, we'd appreciate it if you call them after we left" Zoro added.
"What's your name boy? I need to know the pirates who saved this town"
"My name is Luffy. I'm gonna be the pirate king" he said with that ever confident smile of his.
"W-Wait here, the town needs to know that the pirates have been dealt with!" without waiting for a reply, the mayor runs to the nearby refugee camp to inform the villagers that it was safe to return. Once the mayor left, the three shared looks before shrugging and walking back to the port.
A few minutes pass and the mayor returns to Buggy's headquarters with the villagers in tow. They look around only to see the unconscious bodies of the pirates that invaded their town and no traces of their supposed saviors.
"I don't understand, where could they be..."
"Mayor, are you sure they're here?" one of the villagers asks.
"No, I definitely said to wait for me-"
He suddenly remembers that the boy mentioned they were pirates. He quickly dashes off to the port as fast as his old legs could carry him which surprised the rest of the villagers. Once he arrives at the port, the mayor was greeted by the sight of their saviors already a few meters out into the sea.
"I told you brats to wait!"
"It's alright, old mayor man! We came here to loot the place!"
"Wha-"
From where he stood, he sees the boy quickly standing up and starts looking around frantically. The boy and the mayor lock eyes with each other before the straw hatted boy looks to an area on the port and starts shouting again.
"Old man! We accidentally left 15 million Beri on that port! We forgot about it! But anyways, we already got 15 million here so we won't turn back, it's yours now!"
The mayor looks to where the boy is looking only to see a large sack of jewelries and other items inside. As the villagers just arrive, he starts crying.
"Thank you for saving the village for me! I promise I won't waste it this time!"
"Shishishishi, no worries! Take care!"
As they sail further and further away, Nami turns to Luffy.
"I didn't expect you to lie so well. I guess some of my traits are rubbing to you"
"I honestly forgot about it. You told me that you want to take all of Buggy's treasure" Nami just shakes her head.
"I guess we're on our way to Usopp now" Zoro added. The thought of finally meeting another one of their former crew mates made Luffy and Nami's heart race. Even Zoro who's usually stoic was ecstatic. During their voyage that lasted a day or two, the three of them trained while occasionally warding off would be bandits on sea preying on small or defenseless ships.
Once they spotted Syrup Village's silhouette far out, the three of them started preparing themselves. Once they got close enough, they finally felt his aura.
"Identify yourselves, unknown sailors!" they heard in what appears to be from a voice amplifying machine.
"This island is currently protected by the great Captain Usopp. Any would be attackers will face the wrath of me and my 80 million followers!" as Usopp said this, several human-like shadows appear behind the bushes of the shore.
"Oh damn. 80 million huh? I guess our newly-formed pirate crew is no match for this great Captain Usopp." Zoro said with a smirk.
"What should we do? Do we loot the place?" Nami added.
"I'm going to steal all their meat!"
Suddenly, most of the shadows disappear along with the sound of several footsteps heading away from them.
"D-Don't run away you cowards, these are real pirates!"
Unknown to Usopp, Luffy and Nami wore a somewhat melancholic expression filled with fondness and warmth. And even Zoro's face seem a bit softer now that they're seeing their old crew mate.
'We missed you...' the three of them thought. This will happen every time they meet them. Hopefully, they can at least manage.
Luffy summons all his willpower to bury these thoughts. "Hey, I know you. You're Usopp. That's why you seem familiar"
Usopp's chest swells with pride upon hearing that someone recognizes him, although this made him curious.
"Of course, my name is famous all over east blue. So tell me, where have you heard the name of Captain Usopp?"
"I know your father. I met him once back in my town and your noses look alike"
This made Usopp stumble backwards. "W-Wait, you know my dad?"
"Yeah. Why don't you show us a place to eat so we can talk?" Luffy said with a smile.
Usopp nodded eagerly, motioning for the three of them to follow him. "Alright, there's a place you can eat here. Let's go!"
-xxxxx-
"You're serious?! My dad is a member of Red-Haired Shanks' crew?!" Usopp was in disbelief. All his life, he thought that his dad was a member of a normal pirate crew. To hear that he was a member of one of the most powerful pirate crews in the world is just amazing.
"Mhm. He was very good with a gun. When I met him as a kid he looked really cool"
Usopp relaxed in his seat. Hearing tales of his father really made him proud. "Wait, how do you know all of this? Are you telling me the truth?"
"Shanks visited my town when I was a kid. He was the one who gave me this straw hat..." Luffy looked back fondly at the incident. In their previous life and even now, Shanks is a huge influence to him. Not only did he save Luffy from the lord of the coast when he was a kid, but he was the one who stopped the war in Marineford and also gave his brother and old man Whitebeard a proper burial. He owes a lot to that man. Nami and Zoro understood what that hat meant to Luffy. They guess that it should be important to them as well considering it is their crew's symbol. Usopp was clueless however but still nods nonetheless.
"Why did you go to this island? This place is pretty small"
"We're looking for a ship. We're planning on heading to the grand line and felt like our little boat was a bit too small" Nami answered.
"Wait. I think I know someone in this village that has a huge ship. They live in the huge mansion on the village's outskirts."
"Really? Do you think they'll let us buy it?" Nami asks again while taking a sip of her drink.
Usopp stands up from his seat. "Yeah. I'll talk to them. The owner of the mansion is my friend. Wait here, I'll be back" he said before immediately running out of the door.
The group went silent after Usopp left. The building is currently empty aside from their group. Even the owner went to the back to wash the dishes. A few minutes later, Zoro decided to break the silence.
"How are you holding up?"
Luffy started tearing up and clenching his fists. "I want to embrace him so badly. I miss them all!"
Nami puts a hand on Luffy's shoulder and squeezes it gently. Meanwhile, Zoro sighs deeply before patting Luffy's straw hat. "I know it hurts. Both Nami and I feel it too. But we need to be strong. For their sakes"
Luffy continued to cry silently. Surviving is really a pain sometimes.
AN: Good to see you all again. I combined the Buggy arc and the intro for Usopp's arc. I wanted to show that despite bringing what they learned and experienced from the new world to the start of their journey, the three of them still have their core emotional beliefs. Luffy is still has the same child-like love for his crew that he showed after Marineford. Nami still has this somewhat maternal nature to her. And Zoro still shows his role as the emotional backbone of the crew that provides stability to them.
Now the reason why I combined the Usopp's intro with the Buggy thing was because I felt that this chapter needed more. I initially finished writing it yesterday but it felt that something was missing.
Now I'm a bit scared that the fight scenes between the cardinal three and their enemies seem to be mary-sue-ish. The only thing I can say to justify that in my head is that "these three are new world veterans and they're fighting east blue people" and I don't know if that's enough. Hopefully, when they start fighting harder opponents in future chapters, it'll be good.
Anyways, I really hope that you guys liked this chapter. And I hope to see you all soon. Take care.