One Piece: My Version
Loguetown Part 1: The Place of Beginnings and Ends
It was a glorious, sunny day out in the East Blue. Luffy sat upon his usual post on the Going Merry's figurehead, smiling broadly at the whole sea in front of him past Ryoku's newly-evolved neck. While the sea was the only thing that could kill him, that didn't stop his yearning embrace of freedom in the world. Hell, he would jump in head first into the water if he wanted to, Devil Fruit or not. He then shifted his gaze to his pet-nakama. Luffy was curious as to how he grew so much and asked Nami if she knew anything about it. To his dismay, she told him that she let him go free as soon as she made it back to her home. Her guess was as good as his.
It had been a few days since Arlong's defeat and the fall of his ambition. The villagers of Cocoyashi cheered for the Straw-Hat Pirates. However their celebration was cut short as the corrupt marine captain, Nezumi attempted to confiscate the money handed to Arlong and the treasure Nami stole from pirates over the years. But the fiery-haired navigator smashed his face in with her staff and told him to keep his slimy hands off her treasure. Before Nezumi could protest, Luffy hoisted him up and swung him around like a ragdoll before tossing him into the air at high speeds until he was nothing but a shining star in the blue sky.
Luffy chuckled to himself when he remembered how the 'rat-guy' as Zoro so bluntly put it, "Squealed like a pig" when he was shot into the sky.
Luffy then thought of the recently new additions to his crew; Sanji the chef, and Gin the newly appointed helmsman. Luffy didn't need Haki to sense that there was something off about the blonde, quiet, cook. But he decided not to worry about it now.
He was impressed with Gin's fighting prowess and he would help him get past the first stop. The helmsman decided to get stronger and joined Zoro and Usopp in their training regiments.
Speaking of which, Sanji surprised everyone when he had already mastered the basic two colors of Haki during a training session. Luffy was curious as to how the cook had come to master both colors. When he asked, Sanji would change the subject or find an excuse with a fake smile.
The cook seemed to be very distant from everyone around him. Here, on this ship, he didn't bother trying to get know anyone. He acted more like he was still working at the Baratie instead of living the life of adventure. Everyone could tell that fake smile was just a mask hiding his true nature.
"Everyone, get over here now!" Nami barked.
Luffy's thoughts came back to Earth when he heard his navigator urgently yell out. He got up from his seat, leapt off the figurehead and landed on deck. He saw Nami standing crossly with a newspaper rolled up in her hand. The rest of the crew stopped what they were doing; Usopp working on his fighting style, Zoro and Gin with weight training, Hawkins snapping out of his meditation, and Sanji stepping out of the kitchen brandishing his knives.
"What's up Nami?" Luffy spoke casually, completely oblivious to the tic mark on his navigator's forehead. His response was a bop to the top of his skull.
Nami shoved the unfolded newspaper she had been holding and shoved it in Luffy's face. She pointed to an article regarding recent events.
"Read!" she barked.
Luffy, not knowing the meaning of subtlety, read the article out loud.
"In recent news, there is uproar in the East Blue. A rookie pirate by the name of Monkey D. 'Straw Hat' Luffy, has made himself known in less than a month's time. He has already taken care of the three major bounties in the East Blue: 'Pirate-Clown' Buggy, 'Foul Play' Don Krieg, and 'Saw-Tooth Arlong. Former Marine Captain Nezumi had this to say:
"That monster has two Devil Fruits! I saw it with my own eyes! One allows him to stretch and the other covers him in some kind of dark smoke- I don't know… Anyway, that boy is a menace and deserves to have his head on a pike! He should not be allowed to live! He had the power of Haki at his disposal and took down Arlong like he was nothing!"
Nezumi was then discharged from the Marines after a recent discovery that he was taking graft from Arlong.
After dealing with the dismissal of Nezumi, several units were sent to among the following places that Straw Hat Luffy's recent trail had made the most impact in the East Blue: Shell Town, Orange Town, the Floating Restaurant Baratie, and finally Cocoyashi village. However the villagers of the aforementioned locations jeered at them and cursed them to get out.
Several people from those locations were questioned about the pirate and they had this to say:
"That boy saved us from those lousy Marines, especially Morgan! Quite frankly, I'd rather trust pirates than them!"
"He liberated our village from Buggy in less than a day than when we contacted the closest Marine base several times for weeks on end, but they didn't bother to show up!"
"Luffy's an honorable young'un. He holds true to his dreams and treasures his friends more than his life. I hope he accomplishes what he's looking for and that I don't regret my decision entrusting my son to his crew."
Due to 'Straw Hat' Luffy having instigated chaos across the East Blue, Fleet Admiral Sengoku has decided to place a bounty on his head. Wanted: Dead or Alive, the bounty for Monkey D. 'Straw Hat' Luffy is 60 million beli due to his adept prowess of Haki and the first person to wield two Devil Fruits."
An illustration of Luffy was portrayed below, showing his usual grin while the back of Usopp's head was in the background.
The captain laughed. "Yes! Finally! I got my first bounty, and it's a big one! Not bad for a head start!" he boasted proudly.
Nami conked him, leaving a large, swollen, bump on Luffy's head. Smoke surrounded her clenched fist as she glared daggers at the downed captain.
"Are you insane? The Marines are going to be all over us now once they see your wanted poster! We're not even in the Grand Line yet and already you've gotten us into deep shit!" the navigator berated and cursed.
"Nami." Luffy spoke with a serious tone, making the navigator's anger vanish instantly. "We live in Golden Age of Piracy, being a pirate alone will get you in trouble with the Marines, bounty or no bounty." This time Luffy's voice went back to his lighter tone. "Besides, it was bound to happen sooner or later, and I'd prefer to let happen sooner than later, so I'm not complaining."
Nami wanted to say more but was interrupted by Sanji's call for lunch.
Later, the crew sat and enjoyed their meal until Usopp popped a question.
"So, where's our next stop?" he asked.
Gin voiced his grim reply. "At the rate we're going, Loguetown, the place where journeys begin and end. It's the final stop before entering the Grand Line. It's also the place where the Pirate King, Gold Roger was born and where he died and began the Golden Age."
At this, Luffy's grin threatened to split his face in two.
"Alright! I wanna go there!" Luffy yelled. He felt as happy as a kid in a candy store.
"If anything, I hope I can find some new swords. I can't fight to my full potential this way." said Zoro.
Usopp scratched his chin in thought before answering. "I've needed some new goggles. Maybe something that can help me in battle."
Nami looked pleased. "And I definitely need some new clothes! Maybe one's that shows off my curves in the right places." she winked at Sanji, who caught her look before turning back to his meal, hoping she wouldn't see the faint blush on his otherwise blank face.
Hawkins said nothing; he was too busy looking at his tarot cards. After a short period of silence from the mystic, he spoke.
"Luffy, expect another recruitment. Someone you've recently met."
Luffy looked perplexed at Hawkins' statement. He knew it was a prediction, but with Hawkins, every prediction was a cryptic message. So he shrugged and pumped his fists into the air.
"Then it's settled, set a course for Loguetown!" he yelled.
As soon as Ryoku was given the directions, he pulled the reigns with all his might, the Going Merry hanging in tow. They sped off into the horizon like an extra-large motorboat to the birth/death place of Gold Roger.
(An unknown island in the New World)
"C-C-Captain, It's Mihawk, he's here!" cried a newbie pirate as he ran into a clearing where his captain would be.
Sure enough there he was, sitting under a large umbrella. Around him were his generals; One was a rotund man chomping on a large piece of rotisserie, the other was a lackadaisical scruffy man laid back against a stump without a care. The last was the captain's first mate, smoking a cigar and had an x-shaped scar across the left side of his face.
Before them stood the World's Greatest Swordsman.
"What is it you want Hawkeye? I'm not in the mood to fight you." the captain replied.
"Don't worry you've bored me long enough. Actually, I came here to tell you that I met some interesting pirates. One of which happened to be a young rookie wearing a similar straw hat you once wore. He's very strong for a rookie." Mihawk pulled out a wanted poster that he been given by the World Government. It was of Monkey D. Luffy.
The sun took the time to illuminate the jungle, revealing a red-haired pirate with a tri-scar over his left eye. He flashed a big grin at Hawk-Eye's description.
"Well I'll be damned! It's Luffy!" Shanks exclaimed happily. All of Red-Haired Pirates lit up with joy at seeing Luffy's first wanted poster. "So you've finally started out Luffy…" Shanks said aloud.
(Fuschia Village)
Back in Luffy's hometown, the local villagers smiled and laughed at how the boy could make a wanted poster look a lot less threatening.
Makino smiled when she saw Luffy wearing Shanks' hat. She was sure that Luffy would go far in the world to accomplish his dream.
Mayor Woop Slap scolded the people for supporting the pirate, but Makino knew that he was happy for Luffy, even if he didn't show it. He was a stubborn old man, the mayor.
'I wonder how Luffy is doing?' she thought.
The Straw-Hat crew had reached their island destination. It was filled with a lot of hustle and bustle and people were coming in and out of shops.
"Whoa! This place is huge!" exclaimed Luffy.
Usopp gaped in awe. "So this is the birthplace of Gold Roger."
"And the place of his execution." inputted Zoro.
Luffy puffed out his chest in a goofy attempt to look tough. "Yosh! I'm going to go see the execution scaffold!"
Hawkins decided to stay and guard the ship while examining his tarot cards.
Usopp wanted to get some new goggles as he remembered that they broke during his fight with Kuro.
Gin and Zoro decided to get new weapons of their caliber so they went in search of a local weapon shop.
Sanji probably needed more kitchen utensils and food. Just as he was about to head off, he was promptly yanked by his arm. He snapped his head in the direction of a red-head navigator tugging at his arm.
"N-Nami-san?" he stuttered surprisingly when he noticed a playful, mischievous grin on her adorable face.
"Gomen ne Sanji-kun, but you're going to help me shop for clothes!" Before the cook could say anything she pulled him away and went to the nearest clothing store, his cigarette nearly falling out of his mouth.
Zoro and Gin walked for a couple of minutes trying to find the weapon shop. Well, trying and failing since Zoro was the one leading the way.
"I'm telling you that we should just stop and ask for directions!" Gin argued.
"And I'm telling you we don't need directions!" Zoro countered. "If there's a weapon shop around here, we're bound to find it, so shut up!"
Gin scoffed "With your sense of direction, I'd rather take my chances with a blind man." he remarked.
Zoro rounded on him, his eyes flashed dangerously. "What'd you say?" he growled, preparing to unsheathe Wado from the scabbard. Gin prepared a fighting stance. Sparks of rivalry were shooting from their respective eyes and clashed with each other.
"You wanna fight?" challenged Gin.
Just as the swordsman and the helmsman were about to duke it out, they heard a commotion going on in the middle of a crowd nearby their location, disrupting their argument. They turned their attention to two pirates hassling a young woman with glasses, wielding a simple katana.
"You damn Marines put our boss in jail and now you're gonna pay!" said one ugly, lanky pirate.
"So we figured that if we kidnap you, we'd hold you ransom in exchange for our boss' freedom." threatened another fat ugly pirate with pigtails.
"Well, I'll be happy to take you on." the woman replied with no fear in her soft voice. The crowd of civilians surrounding them stood silent and scared.
As Zoro and Gin were about to step in, they were surprised when they saw her take them both down in one swift motion of fluidity from her sword. In one strike alone, the two pirates were down and out.
Gin was impressed while Zoro was heart-struck at the graceful woman's movement and how she handled her blade.
Of course, that moment passed when she tripped on her own two feet and fell face. The crowd laughed a bit at her klutziness and her calm façade was replaced with one of a clumsy high school girl.
"O-Oh dear, my glasses, where are my glasses?" the woman searched fervently all over the ground for her fallen spectacles.
Zoro found them and picked them up, then knelt down to the woman in front of him. Upon closer inspection he noticed the woman had indigo hair.
"Here are your glasses." he handed the young woman her glasses.
When the woman lifted her head to meet the person kind enough to retrieve them, Zoro froze.
The woman had the face of his long-dead female friend and rival, Kuina.
"Ah, arigato. Sorry, without my glasses I'm not as visually perceptive as the next person." she said with a nervous smile.
Zoro was still frozen on the spot. The Kuina look-alike stopped smiling and looked at the green-haired swordsman perplexingly.
"Uh, hello?" she waved her hand in front of his face a couple times. Gin groaned at this as he unclenched his comrade's fist to prevent from crushing the glasses.
To save face, and what's left of the swordsman's dignity, Gin lugged him over his shoulder while Zoro was playing dead weight. He was muttering something about 'beautiful ghosts' but it was pretty inaudible.
"Sorry about my comrade, he's currently suffering from an advanced case of retard syndrome."
The scruffy helmsman dragged Zoro along, leaving behind the confused woman.
"Smooth sword-boy, real smooth…" Gin said sarcastically.
Usopp was not happy right now. Why? Well, rewinding back a bit to the point where the crew split up in different directions of the town, the first thing he needed to get was new goggles, better than the ones he used to have. When he reached a small goggle shop, he found a pair of sniping goggles that would be perfect for him to see and aim at longer distances, which would be incredibly useful for him to use in upcoming battles in the Grand Line.
Or at least he would have if it weren't for a rude, snot-nosed, 9-year old girl who swiped the purchase from him while he was searching for his wallet. After a brief, childish argument, the girl stuck her tongue out at him and ran off. Usopp chased after her and eventually caught up with her. After he demanded the goggles, demanding they were rightfully his since he was the one about to purchase them. However, when he was done scolding, the girl was brought to tears by his rant and started crying. Taken aback, Usopp tried to calm her down but to no avail.
It was then he felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Not now, can't you see I'm trying to cheer up this bratty little girl?" he yelled, not looking at the person behind him.
"Do you mean my daughter?" replied the person behind him in a gruff voice. Usopp froze before slowly turning around, standing face-to-face with a man in a desperado cowboy get-up with large sideburns and a mustache-goatee combo. He did not look pleased that the sniper was harassing his precious little angel.
'Oh crap…' Usopp cursed inwardly at his misfortune.
Sanji sat firmly in place in front of a privacy booth after Nami went behind the curtain, tossing a seductive wink his way. To be fair, he felt a bit hot under the collar. He had not expected a woman to just drag him to a clothing shop for women. And he did certainly not expect that woman to be his crewmate.
Within a few moments, Nami came back out of the dressing room in her full hourglass glory, scantily clad and wearing a red, skimpy, two-piece bikini which revealed a lot of cleavage for her D-cup sized breasts. The bottom half seemed to be tied together as to give any potential suitor some perverted incentive. Nami posed like a high-fashion model by swinging and swaying her hips as to attract his undivided attention. She succeeded as the blonde chef sat in stunned silence and felt the heat rise up in his collar and felt his pants suddenly tighten.
He caught full view of her creamy, shiny and lightly-tanned skin with the exception of her chest and nether regions. Sanji swallowed thickly as Nami posed in an adorable fashion by placing her left index finger on her bottom lip and pouted cutely with her brown eyes shining.
"~ Ne, Sanji-kun, do I look nice? ~" she innocently asked.
The only response she got was a numb nod. Then her playful, cat-like nature reemerged as she strutted towards his frozen form and pecked him on the cheek.
Placing her mouth near his ear, she whispered, "Good, because I have several outfits I want to try on and I want your honest opinion about them. Every. Single. One."
Though Sanji struggled to keep a calm façade on the outside, inside it took nearly all his willpower not to succumb to his lower instincts. His credo was never to harm or take advantage of women as they should be treated as goddesses from the heavens. He lived by that, as it was one of the only few things he had worth living for.
After several outfit changes, and some serious price-slashing due to Nami's haggling skils, the pair left the shop with several shopping bags carried by the blonde chef. Eventually they crossed paths with Usopp who seemed to be gathering a crowd around him and a mysterious middle-aged man in a desperado outfit. The pair walked up to the sniper, who had fierce determination in his eyes.
"What the hell are you doing Usopp?" Nami yelled.
Usopp ignored her. Instead, he focused on the challenge given to him by the famous bounty hunter in Loguetown, Daddy "The Father" Masterson. The challenge was to shoot a local street sign hanging from a local shop that was several kilometers away. An impossible shot for normal people but to Usopp it was a test of his marksmanship.
The challenge was set as Usopp pulled out his slingshot and readied a single pellet. He stretched the elastic band and aimed carefully at his target. The wind provided even more of a challenge for him as it blew strongly against the wooden sign, making it toss erratically and harder to aim.
Normally, a man would crack under the pressure, but Usopp kept his cool and relied on his instincts and his marksmanship skills to guide his aim.
Time slowed down as Usopp kept his eyes on the moving sign, anticipating sign's swaying direction. Finally, he saw an opportunity and took the shot. Once he released the pellet, it soared in a perfectly straight line. No one heard the impact considering they were at a distance from the target.
Tension filled the air for a moment before Masterson opted for his daughter to hand him the goggles. She begrudgingly accepted and passed it on to him.
The two marksmen stared each other down before the older man handed him the goggles.
"You win, Son of Yasopp." Masterson conceded.
Grabbing his rightful prize, Usopp kept his ferocity and spoke in a strong, confident voice, similar to when he fought Kuro, but there was no anger behind it, only pride.
"The name's Usopp! Remember it, because the whole world will know about a fearsome warrior who sailed the Grand Line!"
The spectators, i.e. a few denizens of Loguetown gaped in awe of the teen's boast. Some thought he was crazy, most of them however thought he would actually do it.
Nami was surprised by the bravado contrary to how she met Usopp before. Apparently, after he was killed by Kuro and miraculously came back from the dead, his attitude changed and he had been granted the same Conqueror Haki as Luffy.
Sanji eyed his crewmate with a curious stare before he caught view of someone in the crowd. An old man in his 80's wearing nothing but rags and had gray, curly eyebrows in the same as fashion as Sanji. His single eye widened when he immediately recognized him.
The old man quickly noticed Sanji looking back at him and quickly shuffled out of the crowd and walked away in a fast pace.
In a reflex, he dropped the bags carrying Nami's new clothes and ran after the old man. Usopp and Nami were startled and their attention was brought to the pirate chef who ran off all of a sudden.
"Sanji-kun! Where are you going?" she called out to him but no answer was given as his form had already disappeared. Nami suddenly felt a tinge of worry grip her heart at cook's action to run off urgently like his life depended on him.
Ever since she met him, she couldn't control the thumping of her heart and the uncontrollable heat that came with it. She knew how out of character this was for her to act like this since she was the one who performed the charms and wiles to trick men into doing stuff for her. And now this cook that she had just met a week ago had already sent her spiraling into storm of love and lust; but mostly lust. Her thoughts trailed back to when Sanji protected her treasure from marines by beating them to a pulp with his legs and she rewarded him with a kiss on the lips. Since then, her body grew hotter when she was close to his proximity and it ached when she was apart from him. She nearly lost it back at the clothing store when she was so close to him and was nearly ready to jump his bones right then and there. Her physical need got so bad that the navigator eventually took up the habit of masturbating in her room at night, thinking of how she longed to be touched by the blonde chef.
Usopp's voice made her lose train of thought.
"Hey uh, Nami…? I don't want to interrupt your…whatever it is your dreaming about…" he gestured to the crimson blush across her face and her fidgeting legs. "But maybe we should head back to the ship."
Nami was suddenly brought back to Earth when she suddenly realized that a few of the spectators were staring at her flustered form.
Feeling the sense of embarrassment turn into rage, she rounded on the sniper, who stepped back a bit when he saw that murderous look women give men when they think they did something wrong but didn't know what they did wrong.
"What?"
Nami said nothing except shoved the bags onto Usopp and forced him to carry all of them while she stormed ahead of him.
Usopp let out an exasperated sigh. 'Women…' and followed her in step, leaving confused spectators before they went about their business.
But Nami's fury vanished when she felt the familiar chill up her spine that warned her that a storm was coming, and a big one at that.
Zoro regained his composure, but his pride as a man had been damaged significantly after that embarrassing moment when he encountered the Kuina-double.
"Damnit! How could I be so weak?" the swordsman berated himself for cracking under pressure and all because he saw the face of his dead female rival on the body of a woman. Gin trailed a few steps behind, smirking amusedly at Zoro as he had just witnessed his comrade's reputation as badass get knocked down a peg.
Zoro let out a frustrated groan. "I guess it can't be helped. I mean, it's uncanny at how much she looks like Kuina. And she's even a swordsman! Damn… I was weak…"
Gin began to laugh uproariously at his green-haired nakama, causing the swordsman to toss him glare over his shoulder.
"What?" Zoro asked, annoyed at Gin's taunting laughter.
When he paused, Gin spoke up again. "You've faced down against Mihawk and lived to tell about…But when it comes to women who can handle swords, you're like a deer caught in the headlights!" the helmsman finished while beginning to laugh uncontrollably.
Zoro's glare darkened. He turned to face the still laughing Gin and hoisted him roughly by the scruff of his shirt.
"Are you just asking me to help sign your death warrant?" he growled.
Gin ceased his laughter and raised a hand wordlessly telling Zoro to calm down.
"Before you even try to kill me…" he then gestured his right index finger in the respective direction. "We're here…"
Zoro whipped his head in the direction Gin was referring to and went wide-eyed when they had finally found the weapon shop. Putting aside the conversation of Zoro's pride for the moment, the two pirates entered the shop.
Upon hearing the footsteps of new customers, a red-nosed, shifty-looking man with a ridiculous haircut came out from the behind a curtain separating the back room from the store with a faux smile of welcome.
"Ah...customers! Yes, yes please feel free to look around at our inventory of weaponry. Whether new or old, I'll buy and sell them for a reasonable price."
Zoro was the first to speak. He pulled out a couple of bills and placed them on the counter.
"I have 100,000 beli, that should be enough to buy two swords right?"
The shopkeeper's elated grin vanished instantly and was replaced with a disappointed frown. "Only 100,000 beli will get you a blunt sword and a rusted cleaver." he replied, dropping the nice act.
'Damnit, Nami!' Zoro cursed the navigator for being so cheap.
The shopkeeper's eyes turned to Gin who was leaning against the wall. "And what do you want?"
Gin placed his tonfa on the counter next. "I need these repaired, with stronger material if possible. And make it quick." he said.
The proprietor took the tonfa in his hands and looked at them for a moment.
"I can have these repaired in 30 minutes for 400,000 beli."
Gin placed several bills in front of the shopkeeper, surprising Zoro.
"When the hell did you get that money?" he asked.
Gin shrugged. "I had some money saved up when I traveled with Krieg." he spoke the name of his former captain without formality or any amount of respect.
The swordsman glowered. 'Fuck…! I should've known better than to ask Nami for money!'
The shopkeeper's stared uninterestingly at the two until Zoro's katana grabbed his attention. He went wide-eyed when he saw familiar white handle and scabbard.
'That sword…could it be?'
"Er..uh…could I see that katana you have sir?" he stammered, desperately trying and failing to keep calm.
Zoro shrugged, handing his most treasured keepsake to the odd-looking, little man. As soon as the sword was clutched in his grubby hands, he unsheathed the blade and gaped at it like a fan-boy geeking out a new comic. The blade he was examining was…
"Oh, Wow!" His thoughts were suddenly disturbed by a woman's gasp. Zoro was surprised to see the look-alike of his dead friend. 'Her again?'
The woman promptly snatched the sword from the store owner and stared at it in utter amazement.
"This is Wado Ichimonji (Straight Road of Harmony), one of the 21 Ō Wazamono (Great Grade Swords)! It's really rare!" she commented highly on the blade.
Zoro raised an eyebrow at her mentioning of his sword's full name. He never bothered to ask his sensei what type of sword it was as he only interested in the fact that it was a keepsake from his deceased friend. Now he's hearing this sword he had been given to him is one of the rarest blades in the world.
The shopkeeper slammed his fist on the counter. "You idiot! Why'd you have to tell him that? Now you've ruined a perfectly good transaction! Get out before you put me out of business!"
The woman snapped out of her thoughts when owner began yelling at her. "Oh, uh, I'm sorry! Did I say something wrong?" she apologized.
The merchant pinched the bridge of his nose, letting more blood flow into his nose, making it a deeper shade of red.
"Never mind! Look you came to pick up your sword right? Meito Shigure (Autumn Rain)? Here, take it and get out!" the merchant pulled out an ornate-designed sheathed sword and threw it to her, which caught her slightly off guard as she fumbled her catch and tripped backwards only to crash into a few sword barrels, spilling scattered blades all over the floor.
"Damnit, you klutzy girl!" the shopkeeper sputtered angrily, a large vein appearing on the top of his dome.
Gin snickered as he watched the girl clumsily gather her bearings. Zoro merely stared uninterestingly. That's when saw a katana that landed closest to his feet. As soon as he laid his eyes on it, he felt drawn to it for some unknown reason. He knelt down to pick it up and firmly grasped the hilt. Once he did, the blood in his arm went cold, but paid it no mind.
The shopkeeper's beady little eyes darted back to the green-haired swordsman only to widen to the size of dinner plates, his jaw dropping halfway to the floor and beads of sweat trickled down in every direction of his head.
The sword-fanatic noticed the sword as well and gasped in shock.
"That sword…!" she paused for a moment to pull out a small book from her pants pocket. She flipped through the pages before landing on a specific page matching the appearance of the sword Zoro was holding. "That's Sandai Kitetsu (Kitetsu III) one of the 50 Wazamono (Grade Swords)!"
Gin shrugged. "So?" he contested aloofly. The woman then rounded on the helmsman, disbelief written across her face.
"SO? This is a fine-grade sword that practically worth a million beli easy! So what is it doing in a barrel full of regular or used swords?"
Gin turned his grim gaze to the shopkeeper who was now sweating bullets. "Oi. Didn't you say that swords in this barrel are worth only 50,000 beli each?"
The sword proprietor shook under Gin's intimidating glare before responding. "Er…yeah?" he quietly muttered.
"Then purchasing it won't be a problem, right?"
The shopkeeper suddenly lost his cool. "No! Not that one! I can't sell that one!"
"And why's that?" Gin persisted.
"Because-!"
Zoro finished his sentence. "It's a cursed blade, isn't it?" he said.
The shopkeeper blinked. "You've heard of it?"
"No. I can just tell." He replied, not taking his eyes of the sword. It was truly a beautiful blade with a bluish flame that gave the impression of being forged by a demon blacksmith.
The shopkeeper gritted his teeth anxiously. "Well, you're right. The Kitetsu swords are all well-made sharp swords, but they're all cursed!"
Zoro, Gin and the woman said nothing before the man continued.
"You think you're the only one to hold that sword. Countless, famous swordsmen have died in the most horrific way possible, all because they wielded the Kitetsu swords. These days, no swordsman worth his pride would use those cursed swords. Of course, even if he did, he wouldn't stay in this world for very long. I'd get rid of the sword myself, but every time I get near it I feel an eerie chill in my bones and back away from it."
The blue-haired sword fanatic bowed and apologized. "Gomen nasai! I didn't realize it was such a dangerous sword on its own!"
"Now do you get how dangerous it is? I can't sell it and I can't get rid of rid of the damn thing? Hell, I'm already cursed just having it in my shop! Before that, I used to have hundreds of customers lining up to get swords so they could sail the Grand Line. But then, once I got my hands on this hellish blade, my luck changed; Customers stopped coming in because those damned marines came in and started ruining my business."
The woman frowned. "Marines protect people from bad guys." she argued.
The shopkeeper sneered. "Yeah, well I like bad guys. They kept this business running. Now I'm barely getting by. Pretty soon I'll have to shut down!"
He was about to say more when Zoro grinned devilishly and raised Kitetsu high in the right light.
"I like this sword! I'll take it!"
The woman looked at him like he was insane, Gin smirked, and the merchant gaped like a fish out of water. "Didn't you hear what I just said, you damned fool? If you wield that sword, you'll die!" His burly wife came up from behind and without warning smacked him upside the head.
"You're the fool! Just sell the damn thing and be rid of it!"
The shopkeeper whimpered from his wife's 'love tap'. "B-But honey…!"
Zoro interrupted them again. "Tell you what, how about my luck vs. the sword's curse. We'll see which one is stronger."
The shopkeeper and his wife blinked confusedly at the swordsman's statement until he threw the sword up into the air and extended his bandana covered arm out.
All the color drained from the merchant and his wife as well as the pupils from their eyes. They started wondering about whether this man had balls of brass or was he just plainly insane?
The blue-haired woman gasped as she made an attempt to stop him when a firm grip clasped on her shoulder held her in place. She abruptly turned her head to see it was Gin.
"What are you doing? Stop him from doing this! Aren't you his friend?" she yelled at the helmsman only to be silenced by his fearsome glare.
"It's exactly why he's my comrade that he needs to do this." he spoke with his usual gravely tone. "This isn't a matter of boasting or showing off. He's literally placing his ambition as a swordsman on the line. If it was a choice to do things by life's expectancies or death, he'd pick death any day of the week." he finished explaining to her.
Gin recalled the day Zoro fought Mihawk. He knew he would be no match for the master swordsman, but he still fought with everything he had, and as a result he managed to leave a cut on Mihawk. That's when he learned what the crew was about; putting their own lives on the line for their dreams. Now the question for him was; what was his dream?
The sound of the blade clang rang through the shop. All eyes were on the swordsman who appeared to have his arm still attached, and the sword sunk to the ground all the way up to the hilt.
Zoro grinned as he pulled out the blade. This time he could feel the sword had a different feel to it, similar to how he held Wado in his hands when he first held it. Kitetsu's curse had been broken and Zoro won, meaning the sword had chosen him as its master.
The shopkeeper could only stare gob-smacked at the man in front of him who recklessly cast aside his own mortality to prove his worth as a swordsman. Never had he seen such ambition in one man before.
"Like I said, I'll take it." said Zoro.
And that's Part 1 of the Loguetown arc. Sorry for the delay my loyal readers. Please bear with me. I suffer from constant procrastination and the occasional writer's block, but only because I feel like I want to put in a good effort of writing my ideas. Hopefully this new chapter will assuage you all while I work on Part 2, which will come soon.