"Soooo...huuungrry." moaned Luffy as he stared into his reflection in the water.
"When are we gonna reach land anyway?" asked Zoro, his arms rested behind his head as he watched the clouds drifted by in the sky.
"Who knows? We've been sailing for awhile by just the wind and the waves. Who knows when we'll reach land." asked Luffy. He splashed the water a bit to cure himself of his boredom. Zoro raised his eyebrow and scowled.
"Isn't the King and Queen of the Pirates supposed to know where were going?" He asked, irritated. Luffy shrugged.
"Not really. We've been sailing here and there." said Luffy. Aya turned to Zoro. "What about you? Aren't you some expert bounty hunter who's been sailing for a long time?" she asked. Zoro blushed seeing that Aya was a leaning in a little too close.
Zoro moved away from her. "I don't have any recollection of calling myself a bounty hunter." He said. He looked back to the sky. "I had to set out to the sea in search of one man. I couldn't return to my village. At that point, I had no choice but to go after pirates to make a living." He said. Aya nodded and looked back at the water. She smirked.
"Yeah, I see. So you're just lost." She said in a teasing voice. A vein popped on Zoro's head. "You don't have to put it like that!" He snapped, slamming his hand to the side of the boat. The boat rocked violently back and forth, knocking Luffy's hat off his head. His eyes widen.
"Oh no! Not my Shanks hat!" yelled Luffy. Zoro and Luffy quickly rushed after it
"This straw hat means more to me then you'll ever know. It's been with me in many fights. It's something so precious, I couldn't even give it to you, Luffy."
Ten years ago...
On a island there was a village called Foosha Village. In a bar there was a pirate crew who were celebrating and partying as they drank and feasted. At the counter of the bar, there were three people sitting on stools. One was a man with crimson red hair and eyes, black as night. On his left eye, he had a scar that had three slashes. Sitting beside him were two kids, a boy and a girl. The boy had short black hair and was wearing a white shirt with an anchor on it and blue shorts, it was Luffy. The girl had short hair as well the same as her brother's while the tips of her hair reached her chin. She was wearing a blue tank top and shorts, silently reading a book about pirates, it was Aya. Aya coughed as she covered her mouth with her hand until she broke into a coughing fit.
The red-haired man gave the girl a worried look. "You sure you're feeling well? Maybe you should get some rest?" He suggested. Aya shot the man a glare as she frowned at him. Luffy smiled.
"Aya's tough. She's not going to let a cough keep her down." said Luffy.
"I'm fine. Just leave me alone." said Aya. "It's just allergies, it's just a little settled in my chest that's all."
Aya frowned and continued reading pressing her nose to the book while trying to ignore her brother's loud voice as he was talking with the red-haired man.
"You gotta take me on your next adventure, Shanks! I wanna be a pirate, just like you!" said Luffy, happily. The man known as Shanks laughed.
"Right, as if you could ever be a pirate." He chuckled.
"Why couldn't I?" asked Luffy. A man with wavy blond hair chuckled as well.
"Look, Luffy. You might be a good swimmer and all, but, you still wouldn't make it as a pirate." He said. Luffy turned to him staring at him with an annoyed look.
"But I'm an amazing fighter too! My punches are like pistols!" He exclaimed, punching his fist in the air.
"Are they now?" asked Shanks in a bored tone.
"What's that suppose to mean?!" yelled Luffy, angrily.
"Heh! Heh! He means you're too much like a kid, kid." said a heavyset man as he laughed.
"He's right, you know, I've got boys much older than you." Said Yasopp.
Yasopp wobbled over to Aya and throw his arm around her shoulders. He was slightly drunk as Aya could smell the alcohol from his breath. "Hey, Aya. I've got a boy who's just around your age." He said.
"Again, no thanks." said Aya as she looked away from him.
Yasopp gave her a disappointed look. "What? Are you saying that you're too good for him?!" He shouted.
Aya had a disgusted look on her face and she scrunched up her nose in the air sticking out her tongue. "Boys are gross!" She said.
Shanks laughed. "You say that now, Aya. But, one day that might change." He said.
Aya turned to him and glared. "Shut up." She growled.
Luffy turned to Shanks and his crew angrily. "I'm not a kid! I'm a grownup!" shouted Luffy
"Ah, calm down, Luffy. Here have some juice." said Shanks as he passed the boy a glass filled with orange juice. The anger on Luffy's face went away.
"Wow, thanks, Shanks." He said happily, sipping on the juice.
"I don't know one pirate who drinks juice!" Shanks laughed as he slapped his hand on the counter. Aya rolled her eyes at her brother's stupidity. She saw it coming a mile away as soon as the pirate captain handed her brother the drink.
Luffy blushed as his cheeks grew red with embarrassment. "HEY! YOU TRICKED ME!" He yelled. His anger grew as Shanks and his crew laughed at him. "STOP LAUGHING! THAT WAS A CHEAP SHOT!"
Suddenly, the door to the bar was kicked open and everyone went silent as a group of people walked in. "Excuse us." said a low gruff voice. No one in the room moved a muscle, instead of Shanks, who was eating.
"So these are what pass for pirates around these parts? Looks rather sad to me." said a men with long black hair as he walked in. He walked over to the counter, ignoring Shanks, Luffy and Aya. The bar's owner, Makino, walked over to him.
"Welcome, gentlemen. What can I do for you?" She asked. The man smirked.
"We're mountain bandits. But, we didn't come here to tear your place apart. All we want is some sake. I'd say, ten barrels shall do." said the leader of the bandits.
"I'm sorry. But, we're already out of sake." said Makino. The man crossed his arms.
"Really? That's interesting. Then what are these pirates drinking? It doesn't look like water." He said.
"No, it just happens to be the last of what I have stocked. I'm sorry." said Makino. Shanks wiped his mouth as he finished his meal.
"My apologies, gentlemen. Looks like me and my friends drank the place dry. But, you can have this, if you want." He said as he hold up an unopened bottle of sake to the bandit. "You can have this one. It hasn't even been opened and-" The sound of glass shattering echoed in the room as the bandit broke the bottle with his fist over Shank's head.
Makino and Luffy gasped while Aya watched silently. Shanks was doused from the alcohol as it dripped from his clothes. "I'm a wanted man. There's an eight million bounty on my head. So don't insult me with one lousy bottle of sake." said the bandit.
Shank's ignored him and bent down to the floor. "Just great...now the floor's all wet. You got a rag I can clean this up with, Makino?" asked Shanks as he got to his knees and started to pick up the glass shards from the floor.
"Oh no, I'll-"
Crash! Everyone gasped as the bandit slammed Shanks into the counter as he punched him. The plate that was sitting on the counter shattered on top of the captain's head. The bandit pulled out his sword and made a huge scratch on the counter. "Since you like cleaning up messes so much, maybe you'll find this more fulfilling." said the bandit as he put his sword away. "A place with no sake is not worth are time. Let's go." He said as he and his crew walked out of the bar.
"Captain, are you okay? Are you hurt?" asked Makino as she checked Shanks over. The captain waved his hand.
"I don't have a problem in the world, Makino." He said with a laugh. His crew began to join him as they howled in laughter. Shank's threw his head back laughing as hard along with them.
"WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?!"
Everyone stopped as they stared at Luffy who was standing on the stool, fuming in anger. He was breathing heavily and glaring at them. "WHAT'S SO FUNNY?! YOU'VE SHOULD'VE FOUGHT BACK, SHANKS! IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW STRONG THEY LOOK OR HOW MANY THEY WERE, YOU CAN'T JUST LAUGH IT OFF! YOU'RE NOT A MAN OR A PIRATE!" roared Luffy. Shanks gave him an reassuring smile.
"Listen, Luffy. I know how you feel. But the guy just spilled some booze on me, nothing to get upset over." He said. Luffy's shoulders slumped as he pouted. "Whatever." He said. Luffy sat back in his stool and leaned over the counter, sulking. Then he noticed a small chest with a strange looking fruit that was inside it. It was purple and round in shape with swirls on it. Luffy blinked. His mouth began to water practically dripping from it. He leaned over the counter and took the fruit from the chest. Aya coughed. She glanced over at her brother seeing him take the strange fruit from the case. Her eyes gave a questionable look as she stared at the fruit. She had never seen one like it before.
"You really shouldn't eat that. You don't even know what that is." said Aya. Luffy didn't hear her and opened his mouth. Before she could stop him, Luffy had already chomped down on it and swallowed a bite. Aya slapped her forehead and groaned.
Shanks fixed his straw hat then turned to Luffy and saw him eating. He chuckled. "You know, Luffy, there are other ways to soothe your anger besides eating." said Shanks.
"Shut up!" yelled Luffy. Shanks noticed something in the boy's hands. His eyes widen.
"Wait, what are you eating?!" He asked. Luffy gulped the fruit down.
"I-uh...well, I-whoa!" yelled Luffy as he was hung upside down in the air by Shanks.
"You did not just eat the fruit from the box, did you?! Spit it out! NOW!" yelled Shanks as he shook him.
"Ow! Ow! What are you doing?! Why are you shaking-"
Suddenly, Luffy's head stretched and smashed to the floor. Everyone was silent staring in shock. Aya's eyes widen as her mouth dropped a bit. "What...what's going on?" asked Luffy. He had a scared look on his face.
"Luffy! You just ate the Gum-Gum fruit! It's part of a group called the Devil Fruit! Eating any of them takes your ability to swim for the rest of their lives! That one caused your body to turn to rubber!" yelled Shanks. Luffy's eyes widen.
"NO WAY!" shouted Luffy. "IT CAN'T!"
"YOU DUMBASS!" shouted Shanks."
Luffy gasped as he felt the wind get knocked out of him as he was slammed into the wall. "Heh, this is just sad. We were just enjoying a drink and you two came and disrupted it." said the leader of the bandits as he and his group snickered. Luffy glared dangerously at him. He glanced over to the side and saw Aya lying on the ground unconscious, completely beaten up bloodied and bruised.
"You better apologize! No one messes with Shank's crew! And you're going to pay for what you did to Aya!" He yelled. The bandit leader placed a foot on Luffy's head. Luffy bared his teeth at him angrily.
"I don't think I insulted you directly." said the leader of the bandits.
"You think wrong! You better apologize or else!" shouted Luffy.
"Big mouth, kid. That's what got you into this shit." said the leader of the bandits.
Back at the bar, the bandits and the leader returned and were gulping down some sake. They were all joking and bad talking about Shanks and his crew.
"What losers! Calling themselves pirates!"
" Pirates are just wimps. Nothing more. They're all talk, no action!"
"SHUT UP!" a loud voice shouted.
Then men turned to see Luffy who was glaring at them angrily while Makino and Aya tried to hold him back. "STOP IT! YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT SHANKS AND HIS CREW! YOU BETTER SHUT YOUR DAMN MOUTHS, BANDITS!" He screamed.
Luffy yelped as he felt the bandit press down on his head harder. "You should watch your mouth, kid. No one has ever insulted me and lived to tell the tale." said the leader as he pulled out his sword.
Luffy charged at the bandit, punching him in the legs. The bandit laughed. He kicked Luffy away, slamming him into the wall. The bandit picked Luffy up and threw back his fist. Aya's eyes widen and she ran over to the two. She jumped up and grabbed onto the bandits arm, dangling from it and bit him. The bandit glared at Aya, dropping Luffy to the floor. He grabbed Aya by the throat lifting her.
"You brat! You bit me!" shouted the bandit.
"Leave him alone!" shouted Aya. The bandit stopped as he saw Aya's necklace shining in his face. He smirked. The bandit grabbed the chain and ripped the necklace off from Aya's neck, holding it in his hand.
"Give it back!" Aya shouted in anger. She bit the bandits hand. The bandit's eyes widen as he yelped in pain. He growled and in a flash he kneed Aya in her chest. He dropped her and she fell to the floor. Aya gasped as she tried to breathe. Then she began coughing up blood as it splattered to the floor. Luffy, Makino, and some of the customers in the bar stared in horror as they saw Aya coughing violently. Aya's eyes widen in fear as she saw the small droplets of blood fell landing on the wooden floor. Aya grabbed her chest in pain and looked up glaring at the bandit. Her vision began to blur.
"Damn you." said Aya, weakly. Luffy gasped as he saw her collapsed.
"Aya!" Luffy shouted as he ran over to her. "You bastard!" He growled as he glared at the bandit.
The bandit laughed and started to walk away. "Take these two with us." He ordered his men. "I'm not done with them yet." They grabbed Luffy and Aya, carrying them to the village square.
The mayor and Makino rushed over to them. "Stop!" yelled the mayor as he and Makino ran in. "Let the children go. I beg you." The leader of the bandits turned to him.
"Please, I have no idea what they've said and I don't intend to fight you for it. I'll even pay you. Just let them live, please." begged the mayor as he got to his knees. The leader of the bandits smirked and pulled out his sword.
"As if. These brats have already got me pissed, and now they will pay for it with their deaths." He said.
"You're the rotten one!" yelled Luffy. The bandit inched the blade towards the boy's neck.
"And you're a lost cause. Why these two are fighting for a punk ass like you and that runt is beyond me. You're just another piece of crap who's life will not be missed." said the bandit.
"Please, no!" cried the mayor and Makino.
"Well, I was wondering why the bar was empty on such a fine day." A voice called out.
Makino and the Mayor gasped as they turned around to see Shanks and his crew behind them. "Well, what do ya know, it's the mountain bandits again." said Shanks as he tipped his hat. The leader of the bandits glared at him. Luffy eyes widen, surprised to see him.
"Pirates, where have you've been? Scrubbing the latrines?" asked the leader of the bandits.
"Luffy." said Shanks, ignoring the bandit. "Didn't you say that your punches were like pistols?" asked the captain in a teasing tone in his voice.
"Shut your mouth." hissed Luffy.
"Listen, pirates. I don't give a damn why you're here, so why don't you buzz off? Better yet, let's send you off in a casket." asked the leader of the bandits. One of his men aimed a pistol at Shanks' head. Shanks smirked.
"Are you willing to risk your life?" asked Shanks. "Now that you've drawn your pistol, are you going go use it?"
Suddenly, a gun shot echoed as it fired.
The bandit's body fell to the ground with a thud. Everyone gasped as one of Shanks men fired taking the bandit out in one shot, while munching a piece of meat from a turkey leg he was holding. "What'd you fellas expect? We play nice? We're pirates for crying out loud." asked one of Shanks' men. Shanks' hat suddenly fell as he lowered his head, as a shadow covered his face.
"Listen, fellas. Whether I'm sprayed with alcohol or doused with food. Hell, I can even take being spat in the face and I'll just laugh it off. But,..." Suddenly, Shanks' looked up with a glare in his eyes as his happy mannerism was gone. "If you ever hurt a friend of mine, or call them useless, that's were I draw the line, regardless of what they've done." said the captain. Luffy's eyes got teary.
"Shanks..." He whispered sadly.
The bandit leader cackled. "So we're going to pay? Fine, let's see if you can survive. Men, kill them all!" He commanded as his men charged at the group of pirates with swords in their hands.
Just as they got closer, suddenly, all of them fell to the ground, dead. The leader of the bandits eyes widen in shock as he saw his men fall one by one, mysteriously. Then a sniper from Shanks' crew stepped up and smirked. "Really, is that all you got?" asked Yasopp.
"Wow..." whispered Luffy in awe. He glance over at Aya. He wished that she could see this as well.
"H-hold on! These kids attacked us!" yelled the leader of the bandits. Shanks smirked.
"Didn't you say you had a bounty on your head?" He asked. The bandit's eyes widen in fear as he stared at the red-haired man before him. Then he pulled out a small bomb and threw it to the ground. It exploded and smoke came flying everywhere.
"Luffy? Aya?" As the smoke cleared. Shanks sighed in relief seeing Aya. But, Luffy was nowhere to be seen. His eyes widen in horror. "Oh no! I let that guy take him! What are we gonna do?!" He asked, panicking. His crew smirked seeing their captain in a panicked state.
"Watch over Aya. I'm going after Luffy!" Shouted Shanks as he chased after the bandit.
Luffy struggled as the bandit leader dangled him over the sea by the collar of his shirt. They were now in a boat in the middle of the ocean. The bandit laughed as he looked to the sky. "Heh, they'll never find me."
"Let me go, damn it! I can't wait to see Shanks rip your head off with his bare hands!" shouted Luffy as he squirmed to get out of the bandits hold on him. The bandit smirked.
"Have fun sleeping with the fishes, kid." said the bandit as he threw Luffy into the water. At the last second, Luffy grabbed the chain from Aya's necklace and ripped it off from the bandit's neck, splashing into the water as he did.
"Hey! Give me that!" shouted the bandit leader.
"No! It's my sister's! You can't have it, you bastard!" Luffy shouted as he flailed and kicked in the water, trying to stay afloat. He felt his body trying to sink. The bandit was about to grab Luffy but something rose from out of the water behind him. A huge shadow casted over him. The bandit froze and turned around to see a giant sea monster with razor sharp teeth. In an instant, the monster ate him in one bite. Luffy gasped and struggled harder as the giant waves knocked him around. His eyes widen as he saw the sea monster swimming closer to him with it's mouth open.
"SHHHAAAAANNNKSSS!" screamed Luffy.
A loud snap was heard as the sea monster crashed into the water. Luffy looked up speechless as something wrapped around him, holding him tightly. "Shanks." He whispered in disbelief. The sea monster breached surface again, getting ready to strike again. It's eyes widen in fear and it froze as it saw Shanks glaring at it. "Get lost." Growled Shanks. It immediately swam away leaving the two alone.
Shanks sighed in relief and smiled as he heard the sound of seagulls and waves crashing nearby as the danger was gone. "I'm in your debt, Luffy. Makino told us everything. On how the two of you defended us and and the name of the crew. How you were willing to fight." He said. Luffy was clutching his shirt tightly, sobbing uncontrollably. He hiccuped as more tears flowed and ran down his cheeks.
Shanks smiled playfully. "Hey, come on. You can't cry. You're a grownup now." He said. Luffy hiccuped.
"But...Shanks...your arm."
"YOUR ARM!" He screamed as he sobbed harder. It was a memory that would haunt him forever. Shanks arm was gone. Blood dripped from the missing limb, staining the captain's shirt and into the water. He had saved Luffy but at the cost of his arm. Shanks placed his other hand on top of Luffy's head patting it reassuringly as the boy cried and trembled. He smiled sadly.
"It's okay, Luffy, it's just an arm. I've got another one. The only thing that matters is that the two of you are safe." said the captain. Luffy clutched his shirt tighter and sobbed burying his face in Shanks' chest. He couldn't protect his sister and he couldn't even protect himself. He felt useless. And because of it, the man that he had looked up to, his idol, lost his arm, sacrificing himself for him. Luffy silently promised himself that he would become stronger so nothing like this ever happens again.
At the docks of the port, Shanks crew hurried to load their ship with cargo of supplies they need. Standing by the ship were three people. "So, you're leaving?" asked Luffy, standing next to Shanks. The red-haired nodded now wearing a black cape over his shoulders covering his missing arm.
"Yeah, it was a nice extended vacation, but, we have to part ways now. I bet you'll miss me, right?" asked the captain. Luffy nodded.
"But, this time will be different. I won't beg you to take me with you. Because I'm gonna become a pirate all on my own." said Luffy.
"Me too." said Aya, now covered in bandages from head to toe. Shanks stuck his tongue at them.
"Bleh. I wouldn't take you with me anyway. You two will never make it as a pirate." He said.
Luffy glared at him. "NO! I WILL MAKE IT AS A PIRATE! SOMEDAY, I'M GONNA GATHER A CREW THAT'S WAY BETTER THAN YOURS AND I'LL FIND THE GREATEST TREASURE OF ALL TIME! THE ONE PIECE! THEN I'LL-I'LL BE KING OF THE PIRATES! I'LL SHOW YOU!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.
"And I'm gonna queen!" shouted Aya. "I'm not going to let anyone beat me up again!"
"You think you'll surpass us, huh?" Shanks asked. Luffy frowned then looked to the ground glaring. Shanks smiled and took off his straw hat. "In that case, I'll leave this hat to you. It means more to me than everything in the world. So you better take care of it. Got it, Luffy?" asked the captain as he placed it on Luffy's head. The hat was a little too big for him and it fell as it nearly covered his eyes. Tears began to form as Luffy felt them sting in his eyes.
Shanks and his crew board the ship and were now sailing away. The villagers waved as it sailed away.
Luffy held his hand in Aya's as they watched the ship sail away. Aya felt him clenching it tightly and she looked to see that he had a serious look on his face. Aya but her lower lip and looked down to the ground. "I am not going to be weak anymore!" Thought Aya as she promised herself, clutching her necklace she was wearing around her neck. Luffy clutched the hat tightly to his chest. Shanks last words echoed their minds.
"I want you to bring this hat back to me one day. In good condition. And only once you've become a great pirates. That's our promise,"
Luffy stared at the hat he was holding in his hands. Zoro raised an eyebrow. Aya gave him a concerned look. Luffy had been quiet for awhile which was unusual for him. "Hey, Luffy. You're gonna drop that again. I thought that it was important to you." said the swordsman. Luffy smiled and placed the hat on his head.
"Yeah, it is thanks." He said, giving Zoro a grin. Zoro groaned.
"I am so hungry, it's killing me." He said. Aya heard her stomach growl and she groaned as well. Luffy blinked and looked to the sky. He noticed that something was flying overhead. It was a giant bird. Luffy smiled. "Hey, let's eat that bird." Zoro rolled his head.
"How do we catch it?" He asked. His eyes widen as he saw Luffy stretch his arm to the sail of the small ship.
"Gum-Gum Rocket!" yelled Luffy.
"Luffy! We're in the middle of the ocean!" shouted Aya as she grabbed onto the straw hat's shirt. "If you miss. I'm gonna have to save your ass!" Just as she finished, in an instant, the two of them were launched into the sky. Zoro tilted his head when he noticed something. He noticed that Aya was screaming wildly. Then he realized what had happened. Luffy's head was stuck in the mouth of the bird's and now the two of them were flying away farther away. Zoro started rowing faster snarling and muttering under his breath, trying to follow after them.
Then he sees a couple of pirates in the water and was heading straight towards them. "I can't stop you're going to have to climb on!" He shouted. The pirates shouted but managed to climb themselves aboard the ship. Zoro look up to the sky but didn't see the bird anymore. He growled as he sat down on the boat. He growled as he thought to himself.
"Just great. It had not only been a few days and now I have already lost both of them." Then he looked up and glared at the pirates that were now sitting in the boat. "You guys made me lose sight of them. Row faster or else." He said, menacingly as threatened to pulled out his swords.
The bird carried Aya and Luffy to an island when suddenly a cannon ball was fired. It hit the bird, dropping them. Luffy and Aya screamed. Now, they were falling, descending faster and faster towards the ground below them.
"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT, LUFFY!" shouted Aya.