The encounter with Johhny and Yosaku, and later the Baratie, happening pretty much exactly as Luffy said it would removed all remaining skepticism from the newly formed Straw Hat Pirate Crew.
"Alright, since we've confirmed that Luffy is looping through time, we need to figure this out." Usopp said seriously.
"I have just one question." Nami asked sweetly. "Why are we wearing these ridiculous black cloaks?"
Indeed, they were wearing black cloaks and sitting around a table, lit only by a single sputtering candle.
"Because we're plotting, Nami." Luffy explained in a 'duh' tone. "I don't like it either, but I want to get back to our adventure, so we have no choice."
"it's tradition." Usopp nodded sagely.
"Right." Luffy nodded as well.
"What have you learned so far?" Zoro asked, covered in his own black cloak and holding a bottle of booze.
"I've learned… that time travel is mysterious." The rubber man said seriously.
They waited for him to elaborate, but the pleased expression on his face clearly showed that he was done.
"Okay, that's nothing then." Nami rolled her eyes, not sure why she had expected anything else. "How did it start?"
"I was at Marineford, trying to save my brother from being executed."
"Marineford?" Zoro asked incredulously. "You mean Marine Headquarters?"
"That's right, everyone was there." Luffy gesticulated. "Because Ace is in Whitebeard's crew, the old man went there to get him back, too. There was a big war."
"And you took us into the middle of that?!" Nami screeched in shocked horror.
"No." Luffy frowned deeply. "We got scattered before that, on Sabaody. I punched one of those Celestial Dragon assholes and Kizaru showed up to fight us, along with that bear guy Warlord."
"Bear guy?" Zoro repeated, going over what he knew of the Warlords. Since Mihawk was one of them, he knew quite a bit. None of them really fit the description, but he some of them fit it less. "Bartholomew Kuma?"
"Yeah, him!" Luffy nodded vigorously. "He ate the Paw Paw Fruit and was able to push things away. He pushed us all away and scattered us. I got sent to Hancock."
"Boa Hancock?" Zoro once again asked for clarification, this time with more incredulity in his tone at his captain's weird luck. "The Pirate Empress, another Warlord?"
"Yeah, her!" Luffy was pleased with how this was going. His crew was helping him figure things out! "She was a big jerk at first, but then she became really helpful. She even let me hide under her clothes so I could break into Impel Down."
Usopp and Nami hadn't been drinking anything, but they still managed to do a spit-take at that. Zoro had been drinking, and did a proper one.
"SHE LET YOU HIDE UNDER HER CLOTHES?!" They shouted.
"Eh? Why's that weird?" Luffy asked, confused.
Nami, Usopp and Zoro exchanged looks of understanding. He's hopeless.
"Wait!" Usopp realized something. "Are you saying that we got scattered, then you seduced a Warlord into sneaking you into the most secure prison in the world and after that you went to fight a war in Marineford?"
"Seduced?" Luffy repeated cluelessly, then shook it off as irrelevant. "They moved Ace just before I got to him, so I had to chase him to Marineford. I almost died so many times! Then… I did die."
The mood suddenly turned somber as he continued.
"I'd gotten him free, but we had that magma bastard admiral, Akainu, chasing us. He insulted Whitebeard and Ace turned back to fight him, the idiot!" Luffy finished with a yell. "I went to help him, but my body stopped listening. Akainu was going to kill me, so Ace jumped in the way, but… his fist went through both of us. We died, and next thing I know I was back at the start of my adventure."
They were all silent for a minute as they thought that over. Nami and Usopp were having serious second thoughts about this crew after learning what kind of craziness their captain would end up dragging them into. Zoro, on the other hand, didn't mind the craziness. What he did mind was the notion that he hadn't been there with Luffy when this war went down. Crewmates should always fight together.
"Was there anyone there with a devil fruit that would have sent you back." Nami asked tentatively, trying to get back to figuring out the time travel.
"Nope." Luffy said immediately.
Another silence descended before Usopp broke it. "I got nothing."
"Me neither."
"Same."
"I told you it was a mystery!"
"Well, whatever." The navigator said tentatively. "Maybe something will come up later, for now we should focus on the more immediate problems. You said that Usopp and I need to get to Cocoyasi to save Genzo?"
Nami was still having some trouble with the idea of trusting Luffy. Even if she no longer doubted that he had indeed traveled through time, years of fear and hate and bitterness still lingered. It was hard to put her faith in this crew to save her and her village, no matter how much she found herself liking them.
Only Luffy's ironclad certainty and the knowledge that Arlong had already killed Genzo in one loop allowed her to silence the voice of doubt that kept insisting that she could still pay the fishman off.
That voice was wrong, no matter how loud it was. She'd known it ever since Luffy had said that Arlong would betray their deal, just as she had always known he would but never wanted to acknowledge because it was the only scrap of hope she had.
"That's right." Luffy nodded. "We had to chase after you the first time because you stole our ship and Usopp saved him just in time."
The navigator almost began sputtering out excuses, before realizing that Luffy wasn't accusing her of anything.
"I'm staying here for Mihawk." Zoro cut in uncompromisingly.
"Your fight is more important than my village?" Nami bristled.
"It's fine." Luffy interrupted before another word could be said. "I'll stay here with Zoro until he's done with Mihawk and then we'll come after you. Just keep the windmill guy safe and don't start anything until we get there."
Luffy could hardly get the words out of his mouth. Keep their heads down? Avoid trouble? Only repeatedly losing his nakama forced him to consider such notions.
"Right." Nami took a deep breath and let it go. She was still angry at Zoro's obsession with Mihawk, but would let it go as long as her village was saved in the end. "We can stay at mine and Nojiko's house until you get there. Arlong usually leaves me alone for a few days after each of my trips."
And she wouldn't be saying anything about the amount of beli in their tangerine garden this time.
XXXXX
Zoro clenched his teeth around the hilt of Wado Ichimonji, preparing for the most important duel of his life. Mihawk had come, just as Luffy had said he would.
Thoughts of Nami came to the fore and made him scowl.
Zoro took being part of a crew deadly serious. Nami was part of the crew and he would fight for her to the death… but his and Kuina's dream was within reach. He couldn't bring himself to let this chance go, no matter how reckless he knew it to be.
Then Mihawk unsheathed his tiny little necklace dagger.
"Oi, what's the meaning of that?" Zoro demanded, insulted.
"I'm no beast that goes all out when hunting a rabbit." Mihawk responded placidly. "Even if you've made a bit of a name for yourself, this is the East Blue, the weakest of all the seas. Unfortunately, I don't carry any blade smaller than this."
His teeth dug into the hilt of his sword in outrage. "That's enough making fun of me!"
But his anger didn't help him. His Oni Giri, a technique that nobody so far has managed to completely block, was stopped in its tracks by that tiny knife.
"Frog in the well, know how big the world is." Mihawk said softly, not strained at all.
And Zoro suddenly knew that he was completely outmatched. When Luffy had mentioned encountering Mihawk, Zoro had assumed that he would win. Usopp and Nami had also assumed the same, he knew.
But Luffy had known better and not warned him.
Zoro appreciated his captain's respect.
With nothing else to do he threw everything into a vicious attack. There was still a desperate hope that he could fulfill his promise to Kuina here and now.
A minute later, that tiny knife threatened to pierce his heart.
"Why don't you step back?" Mihawk asked.
Zoro remembered his promise, his oath to Kuina. He also remembered Luffy, to whom he'd pledged loyalty and Nami, who was relying on them to save her village so that they could sail together.
The wound wasn't serious. If he stepped back, a small bandage and a little rest would be all he needed to recover. They would easily be able to continue on their journey and he would be able to challenge Mihawk again in the future… but it felt like there was an abyss behind him. If he took a step back now, his body might be fine, but his spirit would not be.
With forewarning of facing Mihawk, this battle had been on his mind more than usual.
"I can't." He said, the previous rage at being so outclassed gone. "If I back down now, I would never be able to face you again."
"Yes, that is defeat." Mihawk acknowledged.
"Then I'd rather die!" Sorry, Luffy, but I'd be of no use to you if I faltered here.
He didn't know how he survived this the first time around, but it looked like his rubber captain was going to be looping once more.
Then the knife was smoothly pulled out and there was a hint of respect in Mihawk's eyes. The man asked for his name and drew his black sword.
Oh, so that's how it is.
Another minute later, he was falling to the ground with his chest slashed open. Luffy caught him before he fell, staring down at him without surprise.
Zoro had enough strength left to make a proper pledge to his captain, one that held equal importance to the one he'd made to Kuina. "I'll never lose again. That alright with you, Pirate King?!"
"Yeah." Luffy nodded with a big grin.
"Good." Zoro gasped painfully. "Now let's go save that woman."
XXXXX
The first thing Nami did after getting back home was visit Genzo and demand to know if he had anything that would provoke Arlong into killing him. As it happened, the old man had managed to get his hands on a gun.
As if guns would do anything against Arlong. She was able to convince him to get rid of it, and that she had friends coming who would be able to kick the fishman's ass. He seemed more relieved at knowing that she had friends than at the prospect of being free from Arlong's tyranny. That didn't make her cry at all!
The next few days were spent with Nojiko, hiding Usopp in their house… and moving her treasure somewhere else just in case. The wait was nerve-wracking, but nothing much happened in the end.
Finally, Luffy and the others arrived. Zoro borrowed Johnny and Yosaku's swords, got himself briefly looked at by the village doctor and then they went to challenge the fishmen.
It was almost anti-climactic how easily they won, but her doubts were fully silenced and she was able to join the crew without holding anything back.
XXXXX
After the obligatory party to celebrate being rid of Arlong (Luffy remembered to gorge himself on ham melons), they set sail for Loguetown. Of course, there was something that had to be done for Sanji as well.
"Why are you all dressed in creepy black cloaks?" The cook asked, taking a pull of his cigarette.
"Because, Sanji, we are about to induct you into a terrible secret." Usopp said dramatically, doing the Gendo Ikari pose. "Put on the cloak and take a seat at the table."
Sanji looked towards Nami and Zoro, silently asking them if he was serious. Luffy was, of course, a lost cause.
"Just do it." Nami sighed.
Being told to do it by a pretty girl instantly removed all of the cook's hesitation and he swirled the cloak over himself dramatically before sitting down. "Alright, what is this terrible secret?"
"The secret is that Luffy… is stuck in a time loop." Usopp revealed.
Once again, Sanji looked towards Nami and Zoro for confirmation. Luffy was nodding, but that didn't really mean much.
"It's true." The swordsman said. "He told us everything that would happen in Baratie and Nami's village."
Sanji took another deep pull of his cigarette before replying. "You expect me to believe that, you shitty mosshead?!"
"You wanna go, Curly Brow?" Zoro barked back instantly.
"See, I told you they always fight." Luffy laughed.
"This is not the time for that!" Nami screeched at them, reaching out to grab each of their ears. "Sanji, I believe Luffy traveled through time. Isn't that enough?"
"Of course it is, Nami-chwan!" Sanji instantly changed his opinion, making kissy faces at the navigator.
"Good, because this means we have advance information and can strategize before we arrive at the next island." Nami nodded authoritatively.
Luffy started picking his nose, glad that he was able to leave the thinking to his crew.
"Wait. Before we get to that, how did this even happen." Sanji asked. "People don't just randomly get stuck in time loops… do they?" He finished a bit uncertainly.
"We don't know." Zoro's face sported a smile of utter malice. "What we do know is that Luffy got under Boa Hancock's clothes in the future."
"Boa Hancock, the Pirate Empress? The Warlord? The most beautiful woman in the world?"Sanji's tone could only be called 'petrified.'
"That's her." Luffy confirmed happily. "She was a jerk at first when I dropped into her bath, but became really nice after I jumped on her back, always cooking me lots of food and helping me with stuff."
The words slipped right past Sanji's rationality and deep into the lizard part of his brain, which was in his case comprised entirely of libido. Luffy's words had been literal, but Sanji's brain translated it into something a whole lot more lewd. He erupted from his position and started viciously kicking Luffy in the face. "You shitty rubber! How dare you?! Apologize for everything!"
It took a while for Nami to drag the meeting back on track.
"Alright, now that we've stopped screwing around…" Her words were more of a warning and a threat than a statement. "Luffy, what are we going to be running into in Loguetown?"
"Smokey." The rubber man declared firmly.
The rest of the crew waited for an explanation, but none was forthcoming.
"Who or what is Smokey?" Nami asked with exaggerated patience.
"He's a Marine that turns into smoke." Luffy elaborated.
"A Devil Fruit?" Usopp asked curiously.
"Mhm, a Logia. It makes him impossible to hit because he's smoke."
"How are we supposed to beat that?!" The sniper despaired.
The rest were less dramatic, but they did still look to their captain for an explanation.
"Shishishi, just leave him to me." Luffy laughed. If it was the Smoker from the war in Marineford, he would be a challenge, but the rubber man didn't expect much trouble from this one.
"Okay, what else?"
"Ummm…" Luffy considered it, then smacked a fist into his palm. "Oh! Zoro gets new swords and Usopp gets new goggles. And Buggy shows up with Alvida and tries to kill me."
"Alright, if you're handling this unhittable Marine then none of that sounds like a problem. Can you remember anything else?" Nami pressed, because by now she knew her captain enough to not put any faith into his intellectual capacity or danger sense.
Luffy crossed his arms and thought hard, tongue sticking out of his mouth in raw concentration as he tried to dredge up information from the depths of his cranium.
"Aha!" He exclaimed. "When we were in Water 7, my grampa said that my dad was in Loguetown, too."
"Your father? Is he important? What's his name?" Nami asked with a frown.
"I guess?" Luffy said uncertainly. "He's a revolutionary. His name is Dragon."
Nami took a deep breath before letting her feelings be known. "Luffy, Dragon isn't just some revolutionary. He's the revolutionary, their leader. STOP DISMISSING IMPORTANT INFORMATION!"
"Okay." Luffy agreed, having no idea what she was getting so worked up about.
"Do you know any other big shots?" Usopp asked, only half joking.
"Well, I guess my grampa is a big deal in the Marines." Luffy said, while picking his nose.
"Monkey D. Garp, of course." Sanji huffed in amused exasperation. "They have the same name, but I didn't think a Marine hero would be related to our shitty rubber captain."
"Gramps wanted me to be a Marine, but pirates are way cooler." Luffy nodded. "And I promised Shanks I would give him back my hat when I became a great pirate."
"Red-hair Shanks, the Emperor?" Zoro wasn't even surprised at this point.
"That's him. His crew used to hang around our village."
Nami had a headache. "Okay, so our captain has connections to a lot of important people. Anyone else? Did the Whitebeard Pirates babysit you when you were a kid?"
The question was sarcastic, but Luffy's reply made her smack her head against the table.
"No, but my brother joined them after he went to sea."
"Your brother Ace is Firefist Ace?" Zoro was now just straight up amused.
"Uh huh."
"Luffy, I swear to God, if you say tell me that your mother is Big Mom or something like that, I am going to hurt you." Nami said sweetly.
"I don't know who my mom is." Luffy replied.
"This is interesting but not really important right now." Sanji said, striking a cool pose and taking a drag of his cigarette. "What is important is that you tell me if we meet any beautiful ladies in Loguetown."
"Love Cook." Zoro insulted.
"You wanna go, Marimo?!" Sanji roared in outrage.
Nami bonked both of them preemptively.
"Zoro runs into one, I think." Luffy scratched at his cheek. "Her name is Tashigi, she's a swordswoman on Smoker's crew."
"Swordswoman?" Zoro's interest was suddenly piqued. "Is she any good?"
"Don't even think of cutting her clothes off, you barbarian!" Sanji yelled.
"I'm not a pervert like you, Swirly Brow!" Zoro shouted back. "I'd just cut her up if we fight."
"You have no idea how to treat a lady!"
"If she's decided to live by the sword, then she knows that she can die by the sword."
"Brute. Ogre! Enemy of women!"
"Sanji, I'm hungry!"
Not much else was accomplished that day.
XXXXX
Monkey D. Dragon watched as his son and his crew went about Loguetown. They were an interesting bunch, none more so than their captain.
Dragon had not been a presence in his son's life. He could not be, not without drawing the attention of the World Government towards him. Still, he had occasionally checked up on him, enough to know that there was something wrong.
Luffy was too strong, his spirit already showing signs of an awakened Conqueror, and he moved like a man with too much experience for someone who had only just started his journey.
Curious, to say the least.
Dragon continued watching as he climbed to the top of the execution platform, easily dodged the attempt by Buggy the Clown to trap him in the pillory and proclaimed to the world that he would be the Pirate King.
Dragon had to grin at that. It was a worthy ambition, and not one originating out of base greed like it did with so many other pirates.
Of course, making such a brazen declaration at the site of Gol D. Roger's death was a surefire way to get the Marines riled up. The garrison commander, Captain Smoker, immediately set out to capture Luffy.
By that point, Dragon was not terribly surprised to see that his son seemed to already know about Smoker's Devil Fruit and that he was able to deal with the Logia despite having no Haki. He didn't win, but Smoker also wasn't able to pin him down.
Just another clue that something was off about Luffy. Many a rookie pirate's career ended when they first encountered a Logia. The intangibility granted by that class of Devil Fruit was an enormous advantage against those who were still new to the world.
Luffy was fighting like a man who had already faced and overcome such challenges.
Their fight took them all the way back to the docks and then Luffy revealed his plan. He stole Smoker's jitte, which turned out to have a Seastone tip, and used the man's own weapon to disable him. Dragon chuckled, imagining the Marine captain's humiliation.
Since the Seastone tip had never been mentioned, it could only mean that Luffy had somehow either recognized it or known about it ahead of time. Neither of that should be possible, seeing as this was the East Blue where the material was extremely rare.
Dragon had a mystery to ponder.