Regret. It was actually an alien feeling to him until that very moment. Sure one could say he regretted many things in his short 14 years but those were more like painful wounds even the time couldn't heal but this…he pondered slightly it was probably the first time he regretted deceiving someone. Luffy's eyes were drawn to the moon and somehow his silent but faithful companion that accompanied him through thousand or more of sleepless nights seemed to shine just a bit too brightly for his liking. He sighed as he let his feet carry on their monotone rhythm of back-and-front movement. His boots making a small clicking like sound whenever they hit the ship's railing. His short pants were not giving any protection against the night's chilly wind but he ignored it all in favor of tugging on his way too big shirt's sleeves again. His hair was in a messy ponytail by the base of his neck, some strand actually got lose and provided him with a continuous but small distraction as he placed it behind his ear once more, meanwhile his other hand clenched around Smoker's lighter again.
"Are you perhaps planning on destroying the railings?" Shanks asked as he neared the scowling read pouting boy.
"No."
"Good the ship's carpenter has already an overload of work as it is." The red-head smiled as he leaned against the rails beside Luffy's long katana with a small but satisfied sigh. The captain seemed to enjoy the blissful silence.
"Have you…" Luffy finally asked. "Is it…" The red-head decided to be patient and listen carefully. Who knows he might even discover the reason the kid was moping around and acting like a kicked puppy all the time nowadays. "I feel regretful. I never felt regretful or sorry for deceiving someone until now…" the boy started with his earlier dilemma hoping Shanks would understand what he was trying to say. "And I have done it many, many times." From deceiving the guards to actually conning people into making his binding and while he had never been needlessly cruel, he could be a heartless bastard.
Luffy could recall with perfect clarity the time when he took away everything a man owned, maybe even his sanity before he made said man shoot himself in the brain. He had not been regretful and he had been just 10 years old back then. Of course the man had more than deserved to die, he tried to work his magic on Makino and when she refused him he tried to destroy everything she owned in a big childish temper, hoping to change her mind. A good part of the bar has been destroyed then as the man made up some legal bullshit and had the guards from High Tower kick Makino out from her own house for avoiding taxes or some other bullshit he had made up. Then he brought the land through some underhanded means and some bribes. Of course he and his brother made sure Makino got back everything the man took with a quite a big interest. But they still had to rebuild the bar from the sketch, it was just too damaged and dangerous to even try and patch it up. It was one of the reasons they visited the village more often afterwards, they wouldn't allow anyone else to even think of doing something similar.
Back to the topic Luffy had never liked torturing people. That was actually more Sabo's domain, but sometimes, sometimes he truly enjoyed it. He knew that there were people who deserved to die, had actually meet quite a few of them, and ended quite a few of them. He could not allow himself to leave his enemies alive and hope they won't come around later looking for revenge. And he would be damned before he let something like that to happen, but that wasn't the point. He was not particularly blood thirsty, maybe, probably, true to be told some days even he himself wasn't entirely sure about that part. Still the nekomimi-boy rarely got out of his way to end someone's life, it only happened when he truly lost his temper. When someone did something that he considered unforgivable like threatening or; kami be merciful on the poor bastard because he surely wouldn't; actually dare and hurt someone important to him. Those times he did not and would not hold back.
"… is too late to regret it now." Yet he had been needlessly cruel to someone who had done him no harm besides being a marine. And since when was that a sin? Smoker would be fine, he had to be. Luffy was sure the man was hating him and his guts now and somehow that bothered him more then he would care to admit. It was just the natural order since Smokey was a marine and he was a pirate, and he hated it. The man was one cool marine and sometimes the idea of making that marine his nakama just seemed oh so tempting and so unreal. The sheer idea of the man ever joining his crew seemed audacious at best.
"You can always apologize." Shanks said and Luffy actually blinked.
"I could." The nekomimi said and he would be lying if he had to say he hadn't tried imagining that conversation over and over in his head.
"But you won't." The captain said with a raised eyebrow.
"No I won't." The boy somehow sounded both proud and pained by it.
Shanks sighed not knowing what to say that could help. He knew Luffy wasn't the easiest person to get along with and that making the boy apologize would be impossible if said boy didn't want to, he was just stubborn that way. But he also knew that that the boy wouldn't actually put his pride in front of his dear ones. Not when he was ready to face loneliness just to keep them safe. So why wouldn't he at least try? The person Luffy had been talking about was clearly someone the boy valued. Someone important to him… who he hurt and even though he regrets it he won't try and apologize, even if it hurts him not to do so. Almost sound like he was trying to make the person hate him… to keep their distance? To be safe perhaps… There were just too many questions.
"That hopeless eh?" He finally asked giving up on trying to decipher what had happened.
"Yup." Luffy said as he jumped of the railing all while taking his sword and turned toward the kitchen. Maybe he could find some milk? It always made him fall asleep faster and cheer him up.
Seeing the boy try and walk away Shanks couldn't help his curiosity. "So what is the name?" The chances of the boy answering him were fifty-fifty.
Luffy grinned and before the red-haired could ask what was so funny he replied. "Current Marine Captain of Longue Town from the 78 battalion Smoker the White Hunter." The silence was so big that you could hear even a pin drop. Shanks had no words left to say, he was left standing there in complete shock and no question about it gaping like an idiot.
"Good night, Captain!" Luffy shouted cheerily as he left towards the kitchen, seeing Benn walk up to the deck he couldn't help but grin slightly. "Benn-san, I think I broke Shanks." The first-mate looked at the still shocked captain and only sighed.
"Oh well let's enjoy the silence till then." That would have earned him an undignified "Oi!" from the red-haired captain had he been able to talk. Benn petted Luffy's head fondly who chuckled slightly with a purr like undertone in his voice. "Want some milk?"
"Yes please." Luffy said making the first-mate smile so gently that the look-out remained dumbfounded.
~.~
Luffy knew that he was practically the lowest ranked pirate in the crew. He was but the captain's apprentice, and he had to start from the very bottom. He knew the crew's core members were quite fond of him but he didn't want the newer recruits to think it was the only reason he was on the ship. That he was just a snot-nosed kid who couldn't stand his ground. No way. Everyone on the ship was aware that he was a devil-fruit user but they didn't knew what his devil fruit was and while nobody was trying to bully him, they were teasing him quite mercilessly. Maybe they were just a bit jealous? He pondered that slightly as he looked at the deck he just finished scrubbing. The entire ship was shining and sparkling, oh yeah he made sure to polish it after wards.
"What the?!" Shanks asked as he stepped on the deck.
"Wow." Was the only verbal response Benn gave before his eyes landed on him and his smile softened as he walked up to hooded boy. "Made you do it?"
The boy grinned back cheekily. "Hmph, it wasn't that big of a deal."
"You missed a spot though," Shanks said as he approached making Luffy look up at him questioningly, before he could have realized what the captain was planning he was drenched from head to toe. He looked at the bowl in Shanks hand with narrowed eyes and uttered a small "Run". And so the chase started. Luffy was fast he was agile and very flexible, Shanks was for his part enjoying playing tag against a new opponent. As the battle prolonged so did the unwilling partakers join, by the end of it the entire crew was forced to partake in some form, by it willingly or by force. Of course the winners were no one else but Benn who joined force with Luffy and teamed up to take down Shanks, who had been distracted since he managed to just eliminated Yassop and Lucky by making them shoot each other with water pistols.
It was a nice exercise but by the end of it the entire ship needed to be cleaned again. A typhoon could not do so much damage as their crew did playing around, Benn thought with a small frown. The carpenters were going to sulk again. Well nothing he could do about it. He scooped the young pirate up by the end of his hoodie and put him on his shoulder before turning to the losers. "Nice and clean." He said before he turned to leave.
"What?!" Shanks asked not quite sure what was happening.
"You lost so you all clean up." Was the first mate's words before he asked with a chilly voice. "Any complains?"
"No sir none." The crew shouted as once as they got started on the cleaning while Shanks let out an undignified. "But I'm the captain!"
After that incident he started to get along better with the rest of the crew.
~.~
The second incident happened when some low-key pirates attacked them. He had to stay on the ship, since Shanks told him to but then he saw someone jumping ship and since mostly everyone was distracted or cheering on their sharpshooters who were trying to see who could take down more opponents he decided to investigate.
"Yo!" he said with a small smile making the enemy pirate flinch slightly before he turned his eyes to the small form of the nekomimi sitting on a desk. His eyes seemed to glow golden but the man of course attributed it to the poor light he had here below deck. Than his eyes were drawn to the long sword that the boy was hugging. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm…" He wasn't sure what to say. The kid looked like a child but he was part of a dangerous crew.
"Are you perhaps looking for the treasure?" The boy asked finally making the man gulp nervously.
He could admit it or he could try to lie. But it was a kid… and if he tried to run and tell his captain, he could stop him. "Yes…" maybe he could even make the kid show him where they were keeping the treasure?
"Okay." Just okay… weird kid.
"Ahm, could you… perhaps tell me where your captain keeps the treasure."
"Hmm…" the boy said thoughtful. He wanted to play around with the pirate a bit but then Shanks and the crew could finish it all pretty quickly. What to do? "Sure" he said with a grin. He jumped off the desk and smiled amused. "Come on follow me."
~.~
"Dahahah have you seen that chibi?" Shanks asked as he looked around before he turned his questioning eyes to his trust-worthy first-mate. The rest of the crew seeing their captain so silent turned too their eyes to Benn.
"He is below deck, entertaining an uninvited guest." Before Shanks could ask for more clarification a screaming and crying man run to the deck. His face was black like something had just exploded in his face was missing a few teeth's in the front in a way that suggested that something actually knocked them out or more like broke them, and going by the imprint on his face probably a boxer's punch? He had no eyebrows since they had to been burned in the explosion along with some hair but the weird thing about it was that it was missing only on the top of his head. It reminded them of a kappa.
The funniest was of course not that but the thing that replaced the man's eyebrows- a black fluff, part of the man's hair probably that had been glued to his forehead, it was gigantic, fluffy and it reached from one corner of his face to the other. But that wasn't all. His smoked and black face was painted over in weird colors that made him look like an okama and the ballerina tutu wasn't helping. He was running around with a mouse trap on his finger and the man was limping slightly since he had a metal animal trap hanging tightly around his ass.
"No, I don't want it anymore, keep it! " The man shouted and yeah his mascara was running. It was not helping the situation at all. Shanks was laughing so hard his stomach was hurting. Some of the crew were banging on the deck's floor as they were laughing hysterically.
"Come on" Luffy's voice was all too sincere. "I'm sure about it this time." The boy said but the man didn't pause and jumped straight into the water and actually swim away while shouting "Noooo!".
"Shishishishi"
After that incident some of the new recruits actually considered Luffy their personal hero. The nekomimi didn't really know what to do with all the praise and recognition he seemed to get.
~.~
The third incident wasn't exactly an incident … well not exactly, since it never happened. Never. And if someone says differently, they should run before Shanks or the crew hears it.
They were docked on a supposedly inhabited island. Of course what they didn't knew was that the marines had a secret training base on the island and so the entire crew enjoyed a party that barely stopped by the time the sun decided to appear on the horizon yet again. Most of them were all passed out, Shanks included and Benn was back at the ship doing some paper work and checking their supplies. Luffy decided to skip on the crew sometime after midnight when the crew decided to compete on who could get Luffy drunk. Dodging them was fun but their fumbling and tries got boring and annoying after a while. It was unfortunate or maybe lucky, depends on who you ask that Luffy managed to find the marine base while exploring. He had been half-tempted to go and report to Shanks but then he saw how poorly defended it was; full of newbies who could barely hold a weapon let alone fire one correctly. So he decided to just gather information, which was not progressing well since it was in the middle of the night so he infiltrated the base in his cat form. He spent a lot of time with Smokey in Longue Town so he knew just how a marine base functioned. It was like a well-oiled but delicate machine that fell apart when one single screw was out of order.
So that's where Luffy decided to strike first. He added some strong laxatives to the captain's breakfast that was pre-prepared, and some to the crew's. And no he didn't bring the laxatives with himself, he just simply borrowed them from the sick-bay and while he was there he may or may have not changed a few labels on the medicines. Nothing that would be life-threatening. Just enough that it would be quite annoying and take quite some time to straighten out the mess he made. Then he sneaked into the armory and tinkered a bit with the weapons. He had absolutely no aptitude for any type of gun. Something both Benn and Yassop wouldn't stop complaining about but there was one thing he was good at when it came to guns. Wrecking them. Then he sneaked into the sleeping quarters and stole every piece of white shirt he could find. Tossed them into the wash-machine thingy and added some red dye in too. They smelled nice when he took them out, like roses and had a nice pink color too. Sneaking around without being seen was quite easy since almost everyone on the base was sleeping and those who weren't… well they were either terrified of a ghost or were trying to hunt down said ghost. He had his flames make a shape of a man and with some whisper… Hook, line and sink. Poor guys had no idea they were chasing air. He wasn't scared that they would catch him though because unlike some he had the entire building's plan that he niched from the captain desk and was small enough to crawl through the vents. As he was trying to hide the right pair of every shoe he found he remembered about the trick Doc told him about, the one where he could influence the subconscious of someone who was sleeping. It was a neat and funny trick, so he made his way to where the marine instructors were sleeping and made them react in different ways to certain keywords. Some of them were made to believe they were a chicken or a ballerina, a poet, a princess, or to be frightened when they heard certain words. He used different keywords and by the time he finished it was almost sunrise. So after vandalizing the halls with some toilet paper, adding a few more finishing touches to his pranks, mainly letting in some goats with the tags one, two and four written on their back he decided it was time to step back and just observe. It was an amusing morning to say at least, not to mention the captain of the base stepped into every trap the guards placed hoping to catch the ghost.
After orchestrating and letting the entire base fall in total chaos he truly tried to return of course to the beach the red-haired pirates were still lazing around. It was however unlucky again depending on who you ask that he had to cross ways and then confront the patrol that was just returning to the base. Had to they were about to report the location of the Red-haired pirates to HQ.
So here he was playing around with some marines. Dodging the grabby hands of some marines who thought he could use him as a bargain chip against the Red-Haired Pirates. They couldn't even touch him, and didn't seem to want to hurt him either since he looked like a kid in which case they were a bunch of sentimental fools or because they feared what the crew would do should he be actually harmed. He was agile and flexible, hitting with quick attacks and knocking them out with one attack. Moving out of the way of one attack and the next second he had his fists buried deep inside the marine's stomach. It was the kind of moment he had to mind his strength, didn't want to kill the marines by accidents.
"Idiots." He decided the entire loot of them. They could have just radioed the base and tell them where the red-haired pirates were instead they decided to just run back to the base with their tail in between their legs.
"Try and catch me!" He said as he moved and docked again making two marines collide painfully, before jumping at a marine and hooking his feet around his neck, in one move the man was on the ground and Luffy up again.
"Come on!" Luffy shouted and he was grinning the entire time. The nekomimi blocked a punch and used the man's own hand to punch him out. Before he run on the back of a marine who was trying to stand up and used him as jumping board to drop an ax kick on the head of a marine commander, before jumping back and landing on all fours. Seeing their commander taken down so easily the rest of the marines seemed to hesitate slightly before they attacked again. This time no resemblance of order what so ever. He ducked and two marines punched each other then rolled out of the way of a slash as a marine brought out a sword. He punched a running marine in the stomach, avoided another sword slash and then kicked the attacking marine in the head. He grabbed the hand of a marine trying to attack him from behind and throw him into the sand so hard that it raised a small cloud of sand into the air. He then made a handstand and jump-kicked a marine in the head, then jumped up again using the momentum of descend to punch the ground. They marines didn't seemed to understand why before the sand raised and obscured their view almost like smoke grenade would. By the time the sand was carried away by the wind only Luffy was standing, the rest of the marines were all passed out on the ground. He didn't kill them just hurt them enough so they would not be able to pursue them for a very, very long time.
Luffy didn't realize his hoodie has fallen, but then he turned around there was the entire crew sans Benn just looking at him. He would be lying if he would say he wasn't weirded out just a little bit before…
"Ka-kawai!" resounded through the whole beach and he had to chuckle when Shanks grinned at him fondly while the crew decided to gather around him and mess up his hair. They were all cheering him on and praising him which made him blush cutely. The red-head all made way and quieted when Shanks approached them. The man was looking at him quite seriously but the nekomimi boy could see in his eyes the worry and so Luffy smiled at him reassuringly.
"Sorry captain… I didn't leave you any marines to play with." it was said quite seriously and it was enough to make Shanks snap out of it.
"Dhahaha!" the man addressed them all in a serious manner "Look around, these are the first marines chibi took down on his own since he joined, so now we have to –celebrate , Let's party!"
"Shishishi!" Luffy laughed hearing Shanks dramatic speech.
"Weren't you just complaining about the killer head-ache you have?" Yassop asked with a teasing grin making Shanks scowl slightly before he grinned and then shouted loudly.
"I don't care, Let's drink, let's party!"
"Shouldn't we get off this isl-" Luffy got interrupted by the loud "Party!" followed by lots of cheers the crew shouted back. They didn't stay on the island though because Benn was not in that forgiving mood and he was kind of pissed off for having to take down an entire marine ship on his own and after hearing Luffy's adventure… well he kind of punished the entire crew but mostly Shanks. He also made sure that Luffy bunked with him for the following week just to make sure the boy understood why he had to first report back if he saw a marine base and not foolishly sneak inside said base. It was a painful experience for all of them. That's why and how everyone ended up swearing that they would never ever mention anything that ever took place on the damn island, to no one ever and it was a promise they all intended to keep. So that was the third incident that happened and had been eradicated from history just like that.
~.~
Over the many incidents that took place one of the weirdest was probably the one where people decided to sacrifice Luffy to the Moon God. Like any other story it all started an island that seemed just peaceful and nice, beautiful house with flowers in the windows, people who smiled back at them and children who played on the streets with no care what so ever. No one had any idea that they would encounter an entire cult of fanatics at that given moment.
Luffy had been like always flanked by some of his crewmates as he explored the city. Shanks knew that they were all too overprotective of the boy, but he truly didn't care. He was talking quite animated with Rockstar who was gazing down at Lu with a weird admiration most of the newer recruits seem to have in their eyes, again not that he could fault them for it. The nekomimi boy had the entire crew wrapped around his little finger and he had absolutely no idea, and that made him even more adorable. And yes he knew Luffy was 14 already but anchor didn't look that much, he was small and petite, he looked around 10-12 and 12 being a quite a stretch more importantly it was Luffy, anyone saying that the boy wasn't adorable was either blind or stupid and jealous, possibly all. He was dressed in a black t-shirt with white a grinning cat head on it and white double belts around his midsection. Black pants neatly tucked in some black sturdy boots that almost reached his knees. Black gloves with white guards on his forearms. His cloths were completed by a white sleeveless hooded jacket that was left open and stopped before his knees. His long katana was attached to his jacket.
"Should up and just do as you are told!" the shout was loud and while it gathered most people's attention the red-haired pirates ignored the man with practical ease, they were more preoccupied with the blond boy that hit Luffy as he fell to the ground. Luffy had to control his devil fruit power and not to let his shield make an appearance, wouldn't do to let his devil fruit ruin everyone vacation. And while technically it was not the blond boy's fault but the pirates couldn't help their overprotectiveness. They glared as one at the boy as they all reached for their weapon.
Luffy's attention meanwhile was captured by the blond boy who was trying to sit up. He was nursing his swollen cheek so Luffy reached into his pocket and windrow a handkerchief. "Here." The nekomimi boy said with a gentle smile while looking at the other's bloody lip. The pirates sighed inwardly before letting go of their weapons, knowing all too well the effect that smile would have.
The boy's eyes widened before his expression totally closed off. "I do not need your help." He said tonelessly before he sit up and walked away. Luffy looked at his still outstretched hand with a small frown.
"That brat!" Rockstar said as he started to draw his sword slowly meanwhile the other two pirates behind Luffy did the same.
"Stop." The nekomimi boy said as he placed the handkerchief away and looked at Rockstar with a raise eyebrow. "What were you guys planning to do anyway?"
"Well…"
The boy sighed softly before he smiled at his crewmates "Let's just go. We still have to find a place to dine."
"Oh yeah, somewhere with women…" Rockstar said with a dreamy look, while the others agreed discreetly with him, while Luffy just shook his head fondly. He was slowly getting sick of hearing them sob and wail everyday about the lack of feminine beauty they could admire.
"Fine." They did find a …well he couldn't call it a restaurant, his crewmates called it a cathouse, unfortunately bringing Luffy along kind of backfired on them. Luffy was adorable and cute and he was polite to women, practically he win them all over with one greeting and one simple smile. It was a lost cause afterwards. They women were all over Luffy and they couldn't do get not one gram of attention from them. Luffy meanwhile was being feed by a gorgeous middle-aged brunet, the Owner of the place who decided to close the shop for the day and enjoy pampering the nekomimi boy. The crewmembers tried to explain that they were there with Luffy but they were pushed out the door before they could utter one word. They all were struck flabbergast and after sulking for a bit they decided to try their luck at the next place. They didn't get that far. Benn saw them and asked where Luffy was since he remembered them leaving together. They didn't want to admit that they took him to a cathouse but Benn put the pieces together and punished him severely after he dragged them all back to the ship. Shanks only laughed at their misfortunes before he offered them some booze.
"Night!" Luffy waved cheerfully to the girls who all weaved back to him from the windows.
"Come and visit again!" / "Ciaoo!" / "Take care!" they all shouted and he smiled once again before leaving. He was wearing a satisfied smile and humming slightly as he walked.
"hmp…" Luffy looked at the guy that bumped into his shield and was sent to ground. "… you again?" He asked finally with an amused smile. "Do you make a habit of falling over?" the blond didn't replay only glared at the nekomimi. "Here-" Luffy said extending his hand to help him up but it was slapped away. The blond stood up with his head held up high and cold eyes filled with determination. It was an expression which he had not been totally unfamiliar. He saw it countless times on Sabo's face before. He was always spotting a similar expression whenever he was preparing for battle.
"I told you. I do not need your help." It was hard not to draw parallels though, if he had to guess he'd say the blond was from a noble family too. The way he talked and acted even his mannerism, the tell-tales impossible to hide.
Luffy still couldn't help but chucked hearing those words. Deja-vu. "I know, you are strong after all." He said all too truthfully to be a lie, it probably shocked the blond too, though the boy hide it all too well. "But even the strong need help sometimes." He might have hurt the boy's pride because he was rewarded by a quite hateful glare. Lufy had the guts to consider it progress since last time they talked he was only shown a cold expression of tough unresponsiveness. It did not last long since the boy's eyes was quickly drawn to the destroyed package he had been carrying.
"You! Look at what you did!" The blond said, almost shouted so Luffy looked questioningly at broken bottle on to the ground wondering what could be so important to get this kind of reaction.
"I did? Who was running around like a headless chicken and not even paying attention to where he was headed?" Luffy wanted to ask but bit back the retort. The blond stormed away before he could ask anyway and Luffy was left wondering the second time that day. Should he follow him; it would surely annoy the blond. Still the nekomimi couldn't help wondered why was the boy so agitated all the time? He looked at the ground and raised an eyebrow as he saw the broken bottle of glass that had been left behind. Well there was that to…
~.~
Luffy sighed as he asked himself for the nth time what was he doing? It not like it was his fault the boy fell to the ground… well technically not… his shield was strong so if someone ran into it they would fell on their ass. Totally not his fault, people should just watch where they are going and it wouldn't happen.
"You good for nothing!" The sound of a punch followed and it made Luffy's eyes narrow. It was the same voice… the one from the afternoon belonging to the man that had pushed the blond into him earlier that day. He hurried his pace slightly just as the door opened right in front of him and the blond guy had been pushed outside. "Such a useless son! You're nothing but a shame to me! Don't you dare come back empty handed!" The man shouted before he shut the door.
"Are you alright?!" Luffy asked as he quickly approached the boy whose glare had been almost painful now. The old asshat did a thorough job on the poor guy. His cheeks were swollen again.
"Why are you here?!"
"Well…" Luffy said extending the bottle to the boy. "Wasn't my fault but…"
"…Is so easy for you… isn't it. "The blond said even more hateful before he took the bottle from Luffy's hand. "Let me show you just what I think of your help." The blond said before he opened the bottle and emptied it all on top of Luffy's head, then threw the bottle away. "I do not need your help. How many times do I have to repeat myself till it registers in that tiny brain of yours?" The blond asked before he walked away still limping while Luffy let his tongue taste the combination of humiliation and whiskey that wetted his lips.
~.~
The nekomimi could hear the party a long time before he saw the beach where the ship has been anchored, he huffed for a second before he decided to quit stalling for time.
"Luffy you're back! Come on the party is just starting!" Shanks cheered happily unaware of the boy's foul mood as he glopped him. It didn't take long for him to realize something was amiss though. "Is that whiskey I smell?" The red head asked with a small frown before he looked at the boy's expressionless face and meet a pair of black and cold as the night eyes.
"Yes." He replied monotonously and Shanks was a bit scared to ask for details but he just couldn't help it.
"And why is it on your hair?"
The boy's eyes turned golden with dark tones around his eyes while his tail and ears made appearance. But that wasn't scary, the scary part came when blue fire started to appear on the boy in a random fashion, almost like he was on fire. "Didn't you want to test my devil-fruit abilities?" Luffy asked finally with an all too sincere and wide smile. The chase and battle that followed was considered a legend among the crew.
"What is the matter anchor?" Shanks asked as he sit down beside Luffy on the sand seeing the boy has exhausted himself so much he wasn't even able to stand up anymore. Luffy was a good fighter and he learned fast, he had a versatile style, that was based mostly on the boy's ability to adapt to every situation. It was like he was growing every time they fought not to mention the boy was very creative, a devil fruit like his in the hands of someone like Luffy was a very dangerous combination. But there was the fact that he wouldn't use the six powers against his nakamas, and while he was fast, really fast Shanks was still able to keep and it matter little that he could cause a small earthquake when he couldn't even touch his captain.
"Shanks how did you do it?" Luffy asked finally and it made Shank blink in question.
"Do what?"
"Not punch me for my pigheadedness." It was enough for the red-haired man to understand.
Shanks replied with an amused frown "I did punch you."
"You did hah…" Luffy sighed and looked at the moon, before his eyes watered and no matter how he tried he couldn't stop a tear trail down on his face "I just… don't know what to do… he is hurting so much…" he knew he was acting like a crybaby but he didn't know who else to tell this. "I can feel his pain but… he doesn't want my help. And I don't even mind it if it's not my help" the boy added quickly before he fumbled once again "… I just… I just want him to stop hurting." He tried to will away the tears and before a familiar straw-hat was placed on his head.
"You will find a way." The boy nodded once as he let his tears fall fearlessly now meanwhile Shanks grinned confidently at the night sky. He knew Luffy could do it, the boy could achieve anything he set his mind to.
~.~
"Do we have a deal then?" The man asked not quite able to stall his nerves.
The man nodded his hoodie barely hiding the satisfied grin he was wearing "Yes tomorrow after the clock strikes midnight you will give us the boy in exchange we will give you what you desire."
"You might need to apprehend him, he is strong after all."
"He is but a child, a quite rebellious one... But he will learn his place. Me and my men will make sure of that, worry not. We'll take the boy off your hands soon enough."
~.~
The next day Luffy did not see the boy and he didn't think that going to his house would help him in any way sans making the boy even more annoyed with him. So instead he accompanied some of the girls to the new pool that had been opened. They were quite worried about going alone but after Luffy removed a guest that apparently oversteps his welcome with no effort at all their opinion changed so fast it was almost funny. They had another small altercation when at the reception when one of the worker called the guard and asked him to remove the filthy whores from the building. They were again swiftly taken care of by Luffy who was already annoyed and did not appreciate someone dare to speak of his friends in such derogative manner. The girls tried to tell him that they didn't mind and should just move along, after all in their line of work, what could one ask for, but Luffy was Luffy.
"I don't care." Luffy said shocking them into silence. "You show respect to someone because of their character, not their occupation. You all are wonderful and strong women, and anyone who dares to imply else will have to deal with me." He said that with a dark glare toward the manager who was shacking in his boots. The man apologized at that very moment in dogeza and as a token of his apology allowed Luffy and his friends to enter and try out every ride and service they could offer all free of cost.
"Luffy come in too!" One of the girls called, meanwhile the boy just shook his head. His fear of water did abate somehow through the years but he still did not like the feeling of being powerless.
"The water is wonderful!" Another added hoping to make the boy change his mind but all in vain.
After taking off his coat and his shirt and placing his sword close to him Luffy simply settled in a sun lounger chair close by. "Nya, is fine I just want to sleep a bit." He was still feeling a bit tired after last night's… training; not to mention lazy and the sun was shining in such deliciously warm and tempting way, how could he pass on that?
"You can use my lap as a pillow if you want Luffy-san" One of the girls offered, before another one cut in.
"Luffy you shouldn't sleep in the sun like that, you'll burn your skin, at least let me apply sunscreen."
After lazing hours at the pool, eating until they couldn't anymore, singing karaoke and playing some games Luffy took the girls back to the Madam's place and left with a promise to visit again soon.
It was like a bad trend the nekomimi boy mused. Him running into the blond whenever he was not expecting to. Luckily this time the blond didn't bump into him, he probably didn't even realize that Luffy was there as he ran through the streets as fast as he could. Not after much a few hooded figures rounded around the corner.
"The boy has to be here somewhere, find him!" Shouted one and Luffy raised an eyebrow as he discreetly slipped into the shadows and followed blondies tracks. The boy was hiding in an alley that was close to the docks, he could make it if he ran to the ships. So when he saw the boy hesitate and wait for too long he dropped from the roof and drag the boy back inside the alley's shadows just as a hooded figure walked by.
"You should go to the docks. With so many ships there it would be easy to hide." Luffy said as he released the boy who looked at him with narrowed eyes.
"Go to hell." The boy said before he walked back to the way he had just come from.
The nekomimi boy sighed deeply before he hit the wall once in annoyance, his fist let an indentation on the wall. He should let the boy just do as he wishes and get captured. Who knew why he was being chased anyway? If he was so stupid that he'd walk back into danger just so he didn't do as Luffy told him to. Then again who was Luffy trying to kid anyway? He knew he couldn't just leave the boy alone. But still why did the blond have to be so troublesome?
He did not find the blond anywhere. He walked back to the house he knew the boy and his father had been living in and knocked on the door once then twice. Being in the happy not mood he was he did not do it again instead he drew back his hand and using his strength broken down the door. The man who had been sleeping through his knocking in an alcohol induced coma like state woke up with quite a start.
"Good, you are home." Luffy said as he analyzed the man in front of him. The man was tall but thin, probably thanks to the all the alcohol he had been consuming quite regularly if the mass of empty glasses of different alcoholic beverages was anything to go by. His clothes were stinking of perspiration and through probably had been made from fancy materials they were old now and quite ragged. The big house, the boy's attitude, the lack of any photo and the almost empty save for the trash filled house, plus the man's behavior all spoke about a once wealthy family. A man clinging so much to the past and to the memory of better days that he was wasting away the present.
"Who are you?!" The man asked full of anger. "How dare you(hic) just intrude-" the man prattled on.
"Your son, where is he?" He asked slowly and the man either hadn't been listening or just didn't register the danger he has been in. Still one would think that braking down a gigantic metal door with his barehand was enough to make people at least wary of him but no. The man lunched a punch that the boy stopped easily. He gripped the man's hand hard enough to make it uncomfortable and squirm like a worm.
"Let go you little brat!(hic) do… do you even know(hic)… you have to… I'm-" The man said as he tried to detach his hand from the man's.
"Don't know, don't care."
"Rude(hic)… just like him… I will educate"
"Educate…" Luffy repeated the word slowly as he remembered the boy's wounds. "Educate?" the word tasted like poison on his lips. "You did though didn't you, educated him good? Tell me how old was he when you first hit him? 8 years old maybe even younger?" The boy asked as he squeezed harder and the man cried out in pain as he fell to his knees. "Maybe I should return the favor?" the man trashed and tried to get away hopelessly. "Do not try my patience. Where. Is. Your. Son?"
The man stopped squirming, throw his head back and started to laugh, freaking out the nekomimi slightly. "Haha… him my son?" The man asked before he looked at the small boy no the small devil in front of him. "He's dead. My son is dead… the stupid cultists will make sure of that."
Luffy's eyes widened before they landed on a small pouch of beri and his mind quickly made the connection. "You…you sold your own son-"
"He is not my son! He is but a curse on my head, and when he dies I will rejoice and dance upon his grave."
Luffy couldn't stop himself and punched the man so hard he flew into the wall and actually stuck there motionless for a few seconds. The boy walked closer to the man and let his blue flames dance around his form as he made way to the man who had fell to the ground and was now trying to backtrack further but there was only a wall behind him, he had nowhere to run.
"Where?" Luffy asked before he grabbed the man by the collar of his clothes and made the man look into his golden eyes that were glowing furiously.
"I… don't"
"Tell me!" Luffy ordered and whatever the man had seen in the nekomimi's eyes must have frightened him to the core since the man lost control of his bladder right that given moment. Luffy couldn't care less of the stink, he wanted to know just one thing. "Where do I found them?"
"The old temple…" the man said finally and Luffy punched the man once again. This time he didn't just stuck to the wall he actually put the worm through it.
~.~
"You should listen, this would be so much more easier then… " The hooded figure said as he caressed the boy's face before grabbing his chin and forcefully made the blond look at him. "We do not want to hurt you" lies, all lies why else would have they beat him up for then? "We want to help you" the only ones they wanted to help was themselves. Help was never given freely he knew so much, and anyone who said otherwise was just a naïve idiot. "Use your gifts for us" See there it was. "You'll be rewarded handsomely." It was useless.
"No…" He rasped out and the man tsked before he made way for the other guy, his tormentor to hit him again. He screamed in pain and a few minutes, through it feel like hours before he was tossed into a cage.
His red eyes glared at the wall as he remembered all that took place. He got captured, no surprise there. The chance of a successful escape through the city was less than 15%, if he would have gone to the docks though… No way. Still if that bastard hadn't been there he could have escaped that way, it was all his fault… Denying it wouldn't help, it was his own fault, he was too headstrong to follow such an advice… besides there was just something that unnerved him about that boy. The hooded boy was after all the worst kind of liar that existed… how dare he… he didn't need anyone's pity. His mind wouldn't stop replaying that scene through, when he first meet him. He lost himself for a small second there, still he couldn't help it, those eyes were just so warm, kind and understanding that they couldn't be real. It was all just an illusion, that's right… still why did those words bother him so much? 'You are strong.' The boy said and he was. He survived all these years all alone. How dare he try and pity him? 'But even the strong need help some times.' Damn prick, he thought he understood him oh so well. He knew nothing about his life. He didn't want anyone's help since a long time... but that's wasn't it… was it? After all why wish for something that he knew he can't have.
People looked at but they never saw him. And when they did it was always with pity. He was just another poor boy with a dead mother and a drunkard father. They never saw his scars, his wound, they overlooked it like they weren't even there. From the start there had been only one thing they wanted from him, his talent. They used him and when he got too troublesome… he got sold, like an item that had overgrown its usefulness. His father didn't even consider him a living human being to start with, why was he expecting some else to do so?
~.~
This was the truly the end wasn't it? The blond asked himself as he was dragged into the temple's backyard and thrown in front of the head priests. He either swore his loyalty to this cult or he'll be beaten again until he either died or just gave up and joined.
"What is your choice?" The hooded man asked the same one from the night before.
"Go to h-"
"Nice party you have here. Hope you don't mind if I join." Luffy's voice resounded through the small yard.
"Who is there? Show yourself!" One of the priests commanded and Luffy rolled his eyes before he dropped from the roof. He landed silently in a crouched position between the headpriests and the blond without so much of a flinch after jumping from the roof of a 3 story building.
He rose with a small eye-smile. "Yo!" He didn't get to say anything else as a bunch of spears were pointed at him, they were just a bit too close for his comfort.
"Who are you?" One of the head-priests asked.
"Shouldn't you introduce yourself first? No manners what so ever." The small hooded boy asked making the headpriest's eyebrow twitch in annoyance. "My name is Luffy."
"And what business do you have here Luffy?"
"Well you see… this is quite hard to explain. But right now I'm practically his" he pointed at the blond then making the cult members inch closer "stalker." Yup they all fell onto the ground, the blond included.
"Are you messing around with us?" The head priest asked in annoyance while Luffy continued in his devil could care less attitude.
"Of course not."
The priest turned to the blond finally "Do you know him?"
"… I suppose I run into him a few times." Luffy give them the 'you see'-smile.
"Fine… so what do you want?"
"I believe it was obvious." Luffy said now leveling the entire cult with a cold glare. "I want him." When everyone give him that look he sighed. "Fine let me put it like this. I want you to let him go free. Possibly let him punch you a few times, you know as pay-back for the care he had to suffer under your hands."
The cultists laughed all as one, meanwhile another head-priest couldn't help but add. "Only that, are you sure? Maybe give you all the gold we have while we are at it?"
"If you are offering" Luffy said with a grin. "I wouldn't be a pirate if I'd refuse now would I?" He asked before he utters a silent "-decapitation" and the boy had in one simple move spin around and cut down the head of every guard surrounding him. His movement was fast, smooth and natural that everyone was left in awe by the grace it entailed in its simplicity. He placed the sword back into its sheath a small ching sound that echoed in the silence and broke the spell, all the bodies fell to the ground.
"Y-You…h-how did you?" a headpriest asked as he took a step back in fright.
"Insolent fool!" One of the priests shouted and Luffy ducked under a punch hit the man's feet from behind and then delivered a chop to the neck from behind. Kneed another in the face before grinning cockily at them.
"Next please, the doctor is in. Just so you know I can go all day, hope you're prepared for pain."
"Stop!" The headpriest shouted as he made his guards point a blade at the blond's neck. "You wouldn't want your friend here to die?"
"I don't like threats… I do not respond well to them." Luffy said as he tried to control the fear. He could feel his flames burn under his skin waiting to be release. He wanted to burn them all to ashes, and the ich to do just that was growing stronger with every second that passed .
"You came here to save him, did you not?"
"Correct."
"Then I propose a simple deal. You killed some of my dear friends, so I cannot let you just walk away, but if you win-"
"Win?"
"Yes, a fight. You can challenge us to a fight if you win, you and your friend here can walk away, if you lose, you die."
"All or nothing, right?"
"Precisely."
"I accept."
~.~
"You are an idiot." The blond stated as a matter of fact making Luffy blink at him in confusion before he gave up. It was not the first time he had been told that, so the hooded boy shrugged.
"I've been told so many times before."
"You are truly an idiot!"
"Yes, yes, I know. " Luffy said while the blond frowned once again.
"Why are you here?"
"To bust you out of here."
The blond's eye twitched slightly. "You truly are an idiot aren't you?"Luffy sighed, he considered the fact that the blond was talking to him a victory, now if only he could stop repeating the same questions every five second... "If you truly wanted to liberate me why didn't you try a subtle way?"
Joy, finally! Maybe Kami didn't hate him after all. The blond was looking at him suspiciously and he slowly realized that he had yet to answer the question "Because I thought they were going to kill you."
"They want me to join them. They wouldn't have killed me, beat me up yes. Kill me, I do not believe so."
"Sorry then, next time I'll make sure to ask them beforehand." Luffy said as he took down his jacket and folded it neatly.
"You truly are an"
The small boy groaned "Not that again."
"Why are here for?"
Luffy looked at him with a small smile. "to bust you out of here."
The blond frowned slightly. "You keep saying that."
"You keep asking me that."
"What is your hidden motive?"
"None." Luffy said with no hesitation.
"Liar." A good one but a liar none the least. He had to be.
"Cynic."
"Maybe but I still refuse to believe in fairytales."
"I don't believe in them either."
"Then why?"
"I don't believe in fairy-tales, I believe in my friend though."
"We are not friends. Your theory is flawed. Illogical."
"Who said we are not friends?" Luffy asked with a grin making the blond take a step back. He felt cornered by such a small boy. It was pathetic if he had to say but the boy's personality … it seemed just so gigantic. And worse he was getting caught up in the boy's pace, it was like talking to a brick wall. The boy was unmovable in his points of view. He could see it… saying anything else would be a waste of time.
"I still believe you are an idiot. I didn't ask for your help I do not-"
"You know I asked you three times now, didn't I?" The boy said with amusement. "That's why I decided that from here on I'm not going to ask you, more so from now on I will ignore your point of view on said matter."
"You can not do that!"
"Pirate here, I can do whatever I want." The boy told him with a shit-eating grin.
"I did not ask you to do this!"
"I know, I'm doing it out of my own selfishness. So don't mind, don't mind..." The blond was gaping actually at the boy's impertinence. Did he not understand that he was going to risk his life for a stranger? One that had not been particularly nice to him.
"Here." Luffy said placing his sword in the blond's hand. "Take care of it, it's my treasure."
"Wait… You don't even know my name how could you possibly trust me with-"
Luffy stopped right in front of the battle ring. "Then your name is?"
The blond's eyes widened and before he could stop himself he said it. "Basil. Basil Hawkins." And he just knew he was doomed by the wide smile the boy gave him. It was already too late now, he had already fallen victim to the young boy's charm, it was the first time in years now that he truly wished and wanted actually trust someone. He should have crushed the seeds of hope when he had the chance but is too late now.
~.~
"That little brat is my opponent?" The man asked as he looked at Luffy talking with Basil. He narrowed his eyes as the boy took down his hoodie and couldn't withhold a sneer. The boy was small and dare he say even cute. The brat had no business being there.
"Don't look down on him, just because he is small." One of the priests said. "He killed all those guards in the yard in one move."
"He used a sword. It does not mean he should be allowed to fight in our arena."
"He is a capable fighter." The priest said remembering how quickly he disabled two of the priests.
~.~
Luffy regarded his opponent. Big, full of muscle and not all that stupid, one would have thought at first glance. Dressed in an armor that let his upper body move freely. Guards on his forearm and shin, but no gloves the man didn't protect his fingers either. The man was looking down on him, if the sneer was anything to go by.
"Start!" the priest shouted. Luffy was standing in place as the man took up a fighting stance. The man seeing the boy had yet to take up any stances growled in distaste. Was the boy even trying to fight back? But while the boy's face seemed totally expressionless his eyes had fire in them. He didn't even try to look away, almost challenging him. The cocky little shit. Did he really think he could fight, no that he could actually win against him? It was enraging, he decided. The punk should just die.
It was fast, Luffy decided. For his body type, the man was actually fast. The punch came almost out of nowhere. An impressive swing, if he had to say.
The fighter's eye widened dramatically. Had he missed? No. The boy actually dodged it. Could it be just luck? He followed up with no hesitation putting even more power in his punch. All useless Luffy shifted just slightly to the right letting it fly past him. The movement was small, the boy was barely moving a few millimeters as he dodged the punches thrown his way. It was god damn infuriating. No matter how many he throw the boy seemed to move out of the way seemingly effortless. But it was impossible, he was throwing punches faster and faster.
Luffy moved his head just a little bit to the left then he twisted his body to right, left, right, left, left, right again. The man was getting faster and apparently more careless with every growing second. He was living himself wide open.
The boy was actually tracing his every move, the boy's eyes were moving following his. Was he telegraphing so much that a 12 could read him… but this boy wasn't just a simple 12 year old. Even his master had trouble reading his movement and that was the man who had trained him, yet this boy… that idea made him freeze slightly and jump back. The boy was dangerous.
Luffy raised an eyebrow as the man's move back. "Done? I guess is time to start a counterattack than."
His breath hitched slightly as he saw the feral smirk the boy was wearing. No… he was getting caught up in the boy's pace. The kid might have some skills, else he wouldn't have been able to dodge so well. But that was it, he had been dodging all the time. He was a mess. The man let out a calming breath and closed his eyes only for a second.
"Should have not done that" a voice beside his ears said as a pain erupted in his stomach. "If you close your eyes in battle, you should be prepared to never open them again, weakling."
Basil couldn't believe his eyes, the entire fight was incredibly fast paced. Right from the start the man looked like a towering gorilla over the black haired boy's small frame, and he had been in offensive this entire time, yet no matter how he tried to see it… he was not the one dominating the fight. The petite boy seemed to just move out of the way, and there was a moment Basil had actually thought Luffy had been hit, just for him to realize it was an after image. The punches thrown were so fast that they all looked like a blur to him and he was worried. If only one of them would hit the petite boy, he couldn't help but imagine the worst. As the man jumped back, the blond released a sigh he had no idea he had been holding in until then. And then Luffy spoke, the first time since the battle had started he had shown emotion, and it was frightening and oh so pleasing at the same time. Like an ice cold shower in a hot day of summer. He had been lying if he'd say he saw the little boy move. To him it only looked like Luffy had simply disappeared and then reappear in front of the fighter who was taking a calming breath. He only saw the boy land, gracefully like a feather would, his hand was still outstretched. There was a sound almost like something breaking and then the fighter's body had flown out the ring. Everyone watched not even daring to breath as the man flown through air before hitting the stand the priests had been. The silence was too big…
"I won!" Luffy said with a cheeky grin and then throw a V-sign in his direction.
"N-not so fast!" One of the headpriests shouted. "You only defeated one person. I hope you didn't think this would be all."
"Hmm…"
Basil felt it would be the right moment for him to explain. "You challenged the entire cult, and so they can send in all the fighters they have, for you to win you have to defeat them all. That's why I said it, you're an idiot." But then he didn't know the strength the boy possessed. Maybe just maybe they could win.
"Is that so…" There Luffy actually let out a defeated sigh. He was going to get in trouble with Benn again, it wasn't fair… he did not want to sit through those lectures again.
A.N.: Thank you all for the reviews, here is the new chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. Also a few of you might have some question so let me try and explain in advance-
I: Yes I know that Luffy is a bit weird at the start but he somehow along the way started to think of Smoker as a nakama, so yes he is actually regretful but he doesn't want to make the man give up his calling, because he knows that being a marine is not just a job for Smokey.
II: About Luffy's interaction with the crew, well some of them knew him since Foosha Village but I believe is normal that Shanks crew grew since then and I don't think most pirates even if they are in the same crew would take gladly on letting a 14 year old (Luffy is 14 even if he doesn't look) join them just because he knew their captain. To them it would probably look like Shanks was making an exception for the brat and they didn't know why. They are not hostile just don't respect him, since they see no reason too. Of course as Luffy proves himself they grow fond of him, hard not to. Because while Luffy is moody and can be a lazy bastard sometimes, he always does his job with no complains what so ever. While he is temperamental and is not afraid to unleash his anger or annoyance on the guilty party or Shanks (but mostly Shanks), he is surprisingly shy and bad when it comes to emotions. He is cute and while surprisingly sneaky he is also and almost painfully honest. Has a big ego and sometimes a little too small of a self-esteem. He is also strong enough to stand his own ground which is a big point in their book.
III: Why he didn't kill the marines, well he wasn't taking that fight to seriously. I mean he could have finished them all of with "Soru", but no he was enjoying the fight, well more like he was just playing around with them. Luffy does kill his enemies but he does that only when they piss him off, the guys in Longue Town were trying to kill Smoker plus he was annoyed then with himself, but mostly just seriously pissed off. Killing marines that did nothing but be marines is not something Luffy would likely do. If they piss him off, that's on them. But it would rarely happen otherwise. Of course that doesn't mean he will go out of his way to be nice to them, or control himself. I mean if he sinks a ship he won't throw life-jacket's into the water, similar if someone dies after he punches them too hard or something he won't mourn them.
IV: Yes Basil Hawkins, and sure ask why the answer is simple – I wanted to. He was one of the two characters that I wanted to add to his crew no matter what. Also he didn't eat his devil fruit yet so no powers for him. True to be told I am still debating if I should make him join Luffy right now or just later in the series…
Those are the question I could think of but ask away if you have any other questions. I wait for suggestion so hesitate not to make them.
Well -bye guys! Till next chapter ^^