Hello, and welcome back to 'The Monkey King'. Before we get into the story, I would like to say a few things.
First of all, thank you to everyone who read the first chapter. In the week since I published it, I've gotten almost 100 followers, 75 favorites and 800 views.
Secondly, I must address a few questions I've received.
To sneak13579 and sudhush: I don't intend to give Luffy a Devil Fruit. This is going to be a story about him surviving by his own natural strength and his wits.
To Thisismyswamp: I sent you a pm explaining this, but I will repeat it here because I believe it is important information for everyone to have.
The comment said that Luffy eating a Devil Fruit has nothing to do with his intelligence, so why would not eating one make him smarter. I have three answers to that. Personally, I like answer number two, but each of them have some validity.
1. This is a fanfic, and I can make whatever changes I want. I don't particularly like this answer, as it's lazy and boring, but it is true.
2. I believe that there is a correlation between Luffy's Devil Fruit and his relatively childish and unintelligent behavior. The Gum-Gum Fruit turned Luffy's whole body into rubber. This includes his skin, muscles, bones and organs. This means that his brain is made of rubber. To grossly oversimplify, the brain works by sending and receiving electrical signals throughout your body. My theory, therefor, is that Luffy is now stuck at the mental capacity of a seven year old, as that is when he ate the fruit. Like I said, this is my favorite answer, but if you disagree that's fine.
3. In this version of One Piece, Shanks gave Luffy the gift of knowledge and told him to use it to become the best he can be. Even without that though, this has always bugged me. Luffy's dream required him to go out to sea, yet he never took even a few minutes to try and learn anything even remotely related to sea travel. If I were Luffy, I'd have at least attempted to study the basics of navigation and sailing. This is probably the most logical answer of the three.
Finally, I intend to release a new chapter every Monday, but that is subject to change. I do plan on sticking with this story, as I have the outline done all the way to Skypiea.
Character Ages:
Luffy: 17
Jack: 10
Makino: 35
Coby: 15
Alvida: 30
Nami: 18
Disclaimer: I don't think I'm Eiichirō Oda. I could be wrong about that, but I doubt it.
Now, I've wasted enough of your time, so let's get to the story.
Previously, on 'The Monkey King'...
Looking back, Shanks saw Luffy standing at the end of the dock, waving at the pirates and shouting, "Goodbye, Shanks. I will become the King of the Pirates, and I will see you again. That's a promise."
Shanks just nodded, watching as the island slowly started to shrink away, the ship picking up speed as they headed back home. 'Things are going to get interesting now,' he thought, as the island finally faded completely from view. 'It looks like the Will of D lives on, Roger. I wonder how it will end this time.'
Foosha Village, 10 years later...
The sun rose over the peaceful village, illuminating the worn dirt roads and simple wooden houses with a subtle golden glow. Just outside of town, on a cliff overlooking the sea, there was a small one-room cottage. Sunlight filtered in through the window, waking the buildings lone inhabitant. Stretching to his full height of 5' 9" tall, Monkey D. Luffy prepared to finally set sail. He quickly got dressed, putting on a pair of black suit pants and a red, long-sleeve dress shirt, and slipping on a pair of wooden sandals. He rolled his shirt sleeves halfway up his forearms, and tied a black tie loosely around his neck. Completing the look, he threw a black captain's coat over his shoulders, and finally, topped it all off with his most prized possession, Shanks' old straw hat. Looking around his home for the last time, Luffy grabbed the few possessions he would be bringing with him. First, he put all the books Shanks had given him into a chest. He had read them all at least five times, but brought them with anyway to share with his crew, when he found them. Then, he pulled back a loose floorboard, revealing a small chest that held the Gum-Gum Fruit. Pulling it out, Luffy placed the Devil Fruit with the books, then locked the chest. Finally, he went to his weapon rack and grabbed his staff, Jingu Bang, slinging it over his shoulder, and also took a small dagger that he sheathed on his belt. Picking up the chest under his left arm, he headed out the front door, locking it behind him. With that done, he headed to the bar for a quick breakfast.
As he reached the town square, he felt a familiar tingle at the back of his neck. Taking a small step to the left, he then stuck out his right leg, tripping a small boy who had come running up behind him with a metal pipe.
"Nice try, squirt. You almost got me that time," Luffy said, ruffling the boy's dark red hair.
"No I didn't, you're just saying that to be nice," the kid pouted, kicking the ground lazily.
"Shishishishi, you're right," Luffy laughed, picking the kid up with his right arm, "but that doesn't mean you should give up. Now, come on, Jack, let's get you home to mommy. I'm sure she's worried about her little angel," he said mockingly.
The boy, now identified as Jack, struggled to get free, kicking and screaming all the way to the bar.
"Good morning, Makino," Luffy said, taking his usual seat at the bar. "I brought you a present," he added, dropping Jack into the chair next to his.
"Good morning to you too, Luffy," Makino replied, smiling as she set down two plates of bacon and eggs in front of the boys. "And Jack, what have I told you about attacking Luffy?" she asked, turning to face her son.
"Not to fight before breakfast," Jack answered, hanging his head and picking at his eggs with a fork. "But he's leaving today, and I don't know when I'll see him again. This was my last chance to catch him off guard."
"Don't worry about it, little buddy," Luffy stated, patting the kid on the back. "I've taught you the basic exercises and shown you all the moves. Just remember to never stop moving forward. Your dad told me that a long time ago. You're only ten years old, Jack. You have plenty of time to get stronger. I'm honestly impressed with how far you've come in the three years since your mom let me start teaching you. I'm proud of you, she's proud of you, and I'm sure wherever he is, your dad is proud of you too."
"Yeah, sure. That's easy for you to say. I've never even met him. If he really cared, he would have come back at least once. I don't need or want his approval. In fact, I hate..."
'Smack.' "Don't you ever speak about your father like that!" Makino shouted, slapping her son across the face. "He's a wonderful man, and I will not have you insult him like that."
"Makino, calm down. Let me handle this, okay?" Luffy asked, looking pointedly at Makino. Seeing her nod, he turned his attention to the angry child. "Jack. Hey, Jack. Look at me."
Jack raised his head towards Luffy, tears streaming down his face. "It's not fair," he cried. "He left before I was even born, and now you're leaving me too. Why? What did I do?"
"Calm down, pal," Luffy said, embracing the boy tightly. "You didn't do anything wrong. None of this is your fault, understand?" Pulling back again, Luffy stared straight at Jack. "I didn't know my father either you know. Sure, my grandpa used to come visit, but for the most part it was just me, Ace and Sabo. Then Sabo died, and Ace left. Without them, I had to be the one to protect the village. Now it's my turn to head out to sea, and I'm leaving you in charge here. So no more crying. I'm counting on you to keep your mom and everybody else safe while I'm gone. In about seven years, it'll be your turn. Your dad and I will be out at sea waiting for you if you decide to follow us. But, no matter what you choose to do, as long as you follow your dreams, you can accomplish anything." With that, Luffy finished his breakfast, and got up from the bar. "Come on, I'm going to get ready to set sail now, and I have something to give you both before I go."
The three of them headed to the docks, meeting up with a few of the other villagers along the way. Everyone wished Luffy good luck, telling him that they'd miss him, and that life would be a little less exciting without him. The mayor asked him to reconsider becoming a pirate one last time, but he knew it wouldn't work. Finally, the small procession reached the small boat they had prepared for Luffy's trip. It was a simple, one-masted dinghy, about ten feet long. It had two barrels in it, one full of dried meats, and the other of rum. Luffy put his chest in the boat, opening it to grab the Gum-Gum Fruit.
"Jack, your dad gave me this, just before he left. He told me to do whatever I wanted with it. I held onto it for a while, debating whether or not I wanted to eat it. Every day, when I was done training, I'd take it out and look at it. Then, you were born. I decided that I would keep it safe until I left, then I'd give it to you. I don't know where he got it, but I do know that he'd want you to have it. Eating this will turn your body into rubber. From what I learned in the encyclopedia your dad left with it, that means you'll be able to stretch and bend really far, and blunt attacks, like punches or bullets, won't hurt you. Blades will still cut you, but if you keep up with your Haki training that shouldn't be an issue." Finishing his speech, Luffy handed the boy the Devil Fruit.
Jack took the fruit from Luffy, being careful not to drop it. He looked back at his mother, waiting for her to say something. She just smiled and nodded at him, letting him know she was okay with him eating it. Taking a deep breath, and remembering Luffy's warning about the taste, he quickly bit into the fruit, trying to get it over with as quickly as possible. "Blech! Oh god, I'm going to die! That tasted like rotten garbage seasoned with poison!" Jack screamed, after swallowing down the foul tasting piece of fruit.
"Well, do you feel any different?" Luffy asked, once the boy had calmed down.
"I feel... Doughy. Like my whole body is warm and squishy. Luffy, grab my hand."
Luffy reached out, taking Jack's hand in his own. Then, Jack started to walk away. And kept walking away. He stopped once he reached the shore, fifteen feet down the dock.
Turning around, Jack looked at his arm, and laughed. "Dehehehehe, this is so cool. Okay, Luffy, you can let go of my hand now."
Luffy complied, releasing the boy's hand. As soon as he let go, Jack's arm started flying back to its original position. However, the young red head was unprepared for the force the arm snapping back generated, and he was knocked backwards on to his ass.
Now it was everyone else's turn to laugh, as Jack picked himself up off the beach. Scowling for a second, the boy soon broke into laughter with the crowd.
After the commotion died down, Luffy turned to Makino. "Here is the key to my house. I took everything I needed, but there is still some basic equipment in there, along with things I obviously can't bring with me, like the furniture. Feel free to take anything you want, or leave it all there. When the time comes, Jack can have the place for himself. I know he's your little boy, and you want to protect him, but he's also Shanks' son. I've taught him a lot these last few years, and he can take care of himself. He'll be a great man someday, Makino. Have faith in him."
"Thank you, Luffy. I'll take care of everything from here. Now get going. We've kept you here long enough, it's time for you to begin your journey. I hope you make some great friends out there. And always remember, we're all rooting for you here," Makino said, giving Luffy a quick hug.
"Alright then, goodbye everyone. Don't forget to check the papers, because I'm going to make headlines. After all, I'm going to be the King of the..."
A rubber fist punched him in the gut, knocking him into his boat. "Yeah, yeah. 'King of the Pirates.' We've heard it all before. Now, stop talking about it, and just do it," Jack said, smiling down at Luffy.
"Okay, I'm going," Luffy replied, mockingly hurt. "Good job, by the way. You finally got me, Jack," he added, unfurling the sail.
"You let me do that, and you know it."
"Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, it was a good hit. Take care, everyone," Luffy called out, waving at the crowd as the wind picked up, taking him out to sea to finally begin his journey.
A Few Hours Later...
"Man, that was close," Luffy sighed, putting down the oar he had been using. A massive whirlpool had appeared in his way, and he had to use all of his strength to keep his tiny ship afloat. He shuddered to think what would have happened to him if he hadn't learned basic navigation and sailing techniques.
He kept sailing, staring out over the deep sapphire blue sea, enjoying the smell of the sea air, when he felt something... Off. Looking around, he noticed a cruise ship, with a gaudy duck-like ship parked next to it. Pulling up alongside the two, he noticed the duck ship flying a Jolly Roger.
'Pirates,' he thought, tying his small boat to the passenger ship.
"Moon Walk."
Jumping quickly, he landed on the deck, in the middle of a full on pirate raid. The passengers and crew were lined up on their knees, heads down, while a few men walked down the line collecting the valuables of everyone they passed.
Standing off to the side was a very obese woman, who was probably the captain. Next to her, a small, pink haired boy was shaking, glancing around nervously. Suddenly, he spotted Luffy, who held up a finger to his lips and winked. The boy let out a surprised gasp.
"What is it now, Coby?" the large woman rasped, looking disdainfully at the kid.
"N-Nothing, Lady Alvida! I m-m-must be, uh, imagining things. It looked like another ship was coming," Coby stuttered, pointing in the opposite direction of Luffy. "B-but, it was just a b-bird."
"Coby!" Alvida shouted, turning to look out over the sea. "Tell me, who is the most beautiful woman in the world?"
"Th-that would be you of course, Lady Alvida," Coby replied, cowering back a step.
"Precisely. Now, it's impolite to waste a beautiful persons time, isn't it?"
"Y-Yes, Ma'am!"
"And what is the punishment for impoliteness on my ship?"
"N-no! Please don't kill me! I'm sorry, I'll do anything, just please don't..." he trailed off, looking up at his captain.
Alvida raised a large spiked metal club that she'd had slung over her back, and prepared to crush the whiny brat. "No more excuses! I'm finally going to do what I should have done two years ago!"
Having seen enough, Luffy readied himself for battle.
"Shave."
Alvida swung her mace down, looking forward to the squelching sound that would accompany the death of her annoying cabin boy. Instead, she heard a 'THUD!' as she struck the empty space the boy had just been in. Looking around, she saw a boy in a black captain's coat set Coby down near the row of passengers. As he stood up, Alvida noticed a worn, old straw hat on his head.
"Who the hell are you?!" she screeched, staring menacingly at the newcomer.
Luffy didn't turn around or acknowledge Alvida's question in any way. Instead, he looked down at the boy he'd just rescued. "Are you okay?" he asked, checking the kid for any sign of injury.
Coby nodded weakly, too shocked to say anything.
"Alright. In that case, hold on to my coat for a second. I'll be right back." Luffy draped the large coat over the boy, then stood and turned to face Alvida.
"It's rude to ignore a lady's question brat! Now, who the hell are you?"
"First of all, it's rude to ask someone who they are without introducing yourself first. Secondly, I don't think 'Hell' is a very ladylike word. And finally, I don't see any ladies asking questions here,"Luffy replied mockingly. With each point he brought up, Alvida got angrier and angrier. "In fact, the only thing that's asking questions appears to be a baby whale that learned how to speak and walk upright. It's very impressive."
With that last jab, Alvida snapped. "Men! Kill him! The person who brings me his head gets half of today's haul!"
Suddenly, Luffy was surrounded by about twenty pirates. Looking around at them, he cracked his knuckles, fell into a basic fighting stance, and gestured for them to come and get him.
What happened next was a frantic blur. Luffy sidestepped swords, ducked punches and evaded bullets. He brought his right elbow around, catching one pirate in the back of the neck. Continuing with his momentum, he kicked out his left leg, knocking three more men to the ground. Dodging a few more attacks, Luffy grabbed one of the pirates by the arm and swung him around in a circle, hitting everyone else, before releasing his hold and sending the man flying out to sea. With the crew incapacitated, Luffy turned his attention back to Alvida.
"Well, fine. If that's how you're going to be about it, I'll tell you my name first. Monkey D. Luffy, at your service," he said, taking a mocking bow. "Now, I believe the polite thing to do would be to tell me what your name is."
"Grrr, how dare you mock me. I am the great Lady Alvida, captain of the Alvida Pirates, and you will show me some respect, boy!" she shouted, her face turning a violent shade of red.
"No, that's not how it works. Respect is earned, not given, and respect based on fear is not the kind of respect worth having. But, I will say thank you for finally telling me your name. So, Alvida, where does this conversation end? I have things to do, and I would like to be on my way sooner rather than later. Unless you have anything else to say, I suggest we settle this now," Luffy said, getting serious again. He dropped back into his fighting stance and put his right hand on Jingu Bang, preparing to draw the staff whenever Alvida decided to attack.
"Very well, brat. It's time for you to die!"
Alvida charged head first at Luffy, her mace held overhead with both hands. Luffy drew his staff, twirling it in his hands a few times, ending with it held over his shoulder like a bat. Reaching the straw-hatted boy, Alvida brought her mace down, attempting to crush him.
Luffy, however, was prepared for that, and he swung Jingu Bang like a golf club. He connected with Alvida's mace just as it was about to hit him, sending the mace flying straight up in the air.
Alvida just stood there, a look of shock and confusion on her face. Luffy, meanwhile, transferred the momentum of his swing into a 360° counterclockwise spin on his right leg. He replanted his left foot and, this time, swung his staff like a baseball bat. It once again hit the mace, just as it had been about to crash into the deck, launching it into Alvida's stomach, causing her to rocket off into the distance.
Luffy casually sheathed the staff, and walked back over to Coby. "Problem solved. You're name is Coby, right? That's what Shamu was calling you," Luffy said, picking up his coat.
"Y-yes. W-what are y-you going to d-do to m-m-me?" the small boy asked, still quaking in fear at the events he had just witnessed.
"Do to you? Nothing. Why would I do anything to you? All I want is to ask if you'd like to come with me. The marines will be showing up soon I'm sure, and you don't seem much like someone who chose to become a pirate, so let's get out of here while we still can, and then I'll take you wherever you want. Deal?" Luffy asked, throwing his coat over his left shoulder and extending his right hand.
"Uh... Y-yeah, okay," Coby said, taking Luffy's offered hand. Pulling himself up, he suddenly asked, "Wait, how are we going to escape? Alvida's men burned the lifeboats after securing the passengers."
"On my boat. What, do you think I just randomly showed up here in a floating barrel or something? It's tied up right off to the side here, see..." Luffy trailed off, noticing that his small dinghy was no longer parked between the two larger ships. Looking around desperately, he saw his boat about one hundred feet away and heading north. He could just make out the outline of a person manning the sails. "Oh this is going to be fun," Luffy said, more to himself than to Coby. "Hold on to my back, kid. Things are about to get windy."
"What do you mean by thaaaahhhh!" Coby's question was cut off as Luffy jumped overboard.
"Razor!"
Suddenly, the two young men seemed to disappear in the middle of their free fall, reappearing momentarily about a dozen feet away, before disappearing again. This kept happening for a few more seconds, before they finally fell out of the sky onto the boat.
"Man, *pant* that really *pant* takes a lot *pant* of effort. I haven't *pant* used my abilities *pant* that often *pant* before," Luffy gasped, his breathing ragged.
"What the hell just..." a feminine voice shouted, before being silenced by Luffy's index finger pressed against their lips.
"Be *pant* quiet, Coby. Give me *pant* a second *pant* to breath," Luffy said, his eyes closed.
"Um, Luffy..." Coby started, before he felt Luffy's other index finger on his own lips.
"Shhh. Questions *pant* later, breathing *pant* now."
Silence settled over the ship for a minute, before Luffy finally started breathing normally again. "Now, what were you trying to say, Coby?" he asked, dropping his arms and turning to face the first voice he had heard. Noticing the person he had just addressed, Luffy blinked for a few seconds, rubbing his eyes to make sure he wasn't imagining things. Upon opening his eyes, he saw that the person in front of him was, in fact, real, and very, very angry.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE! WHO ARE YOU!? AND HOW DID YOU GET HERE!? WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE OCEAN! AND..."
Luffy tuned out the ranting, and took a moment to examine his new (unintentional) shipmate.
The girl (because he finally noticed that it was a girl) had shoulder length orange hair and light brown eyes. She wore a blue T-shirt with short, white markings around the neck; black jeans with a red sash tied around her waist; and black, leather heeled boots. Topping off the look, she wore a black armband on each wrist, and a black bandana on her head. She was sitting down, so he couldn't be 100% certain, but if he had to guess, Luffy would say she was about 5' 6", maybe 5' 6.5". Overall, she had a very nice figure, and, although he didn't have much for comparison, Luffy thought she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.
"NOT TO MENTION THE FACT THAT... HELLO, ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?" the girl shouted, snapping her fingers in front of Luffy's face.
"Huh, what? Oh, of course, hello. My name is Monkey D. Luffy. And who, might I ask, are you? And, only slightly more important than that, why did you steal my boat?" Luffy responded, taking off his hat and bowing politely.
"Grrr. Whatever. My name is Nami. And I didn't know this was your boat. I thought it belonged to those stupid pirates I was robbing. It also had that treasure chest, so I took it. I was about to pick the lock and see what was in there when you two fell out of the sky. Speaking of which," she said, turning to Coby, "who are you? I don't remember seeing you on the cruise ship, so that must mean that you're one of those filthy pirates. Which means you," she turned back to Luffy, "are a pirate as well. And if that's the case, then this is MY ship now. I stole it fair and square, so get lost." With that, she reached behind her back and pulled out three wooden sticks, which she screwed together to form a Bo staff. She stood up and pointed the staff at Luffy.
Luffy just yawned and leaned back against the side of the boat. "Yes, Coby was technically with those pirates, but he was more of an indentured servant than a crew member. And yes, I am a pirate, but I really only just got started, and the only thing I've done since I left my village this morning is beat up that annoying, fat pirate lady. So it's not really as bad as you think, see? Just put the staff down, we'll reach the next island, and we can all go our separate ways. Also, if it's treasure you want, I'm afraid I don't have any yet. That chest is full of books. Sailing, navigating, basic stuff like that. If you need to find your way home, the navigation book has an atlas of the East Blue in it. You're more than welcome to use it to get your bearings. Otherwise, we can just sit and talk. I don't really care, but I'm tired, and I don't want to have to hurt you. You're very pretty, and I'd hate to ruin such perfection."
"I don't need your stupid atlas, I'm the best navigator in the whole East Blue. And I'm the one with a weapon right now, so you should be more worried about me hurting you. Also... Wait, what was that last part!?" Nami shouted, turning her face away so Luffy couldn't see her blushing. Had he really just called her perfect? Glancing back towards him, she realized he wasn't half bad either and... 'Stop it, Nami. He's a filthy pirate. He's just trying to catch you off guard. Then he'll probably knock you out, take advantage of you, and take all your money before leaving you at the next island, unconscious and alone. Well, he made one mistake. He's just casually lying there, half asleep, while being threatened. Whatever he did to get here must have really worn him out. In this state, he'll be no match for your speed. Just hit him in the head now, before he can react.'
Finally done with her mental pep talk, Nami turned back towards the straw-hatted boy, her blush replaced by a mask of pure hatred. "You don't get to negotiate here, pirate. Everything on this ship belongs to me now. You'll just have to find a new way to get around, if you even survive."
As she said that, she swung her staff at his head. Luffy ducked under the blow, then returned to his original position, lightly whistling 'Yo Ho', an old pirate shanty that Shanks had taught him. Nami, frustrated by the boy's complete disregard for her attack, swung again. When he dodged that as well, still whistling without a care in the world, she couldn't take it any more. She started rapidly slashing and jabbing at Luffy with wild abandon. Luffy, for his part, seemed to be exerting almost no effort in avoiding the attacks, continuing to whistle without missing a beat. Finally, Nami decided to try and finish the fight with a powerful downward strike. To her surprise, Luffy didn't move this time.
'Ha, it looks like you've finally run out of energy. I've got you now,' she thought, as the staff was just about to hit him. Then, in the blink of an eye, Luffy's arm shot up, grabbed the end of the staff, and pulled it out of Nami's grasp. Unfortunately for her, she had put a lot of force into that attack, and it still had to go somewhere. With a silent gasp, she fell forward, crashing into Luffy, her face landing on his chest. Looking up, she saw the boy smirking at her, before she realized the position she was in. Pulling away incredibly quickly, she crawled backwards all the way to the other end of the ship, burying her face in her arms, blushing even harder than before.
"Shishishishi, you're a really fun person, Nami. It feels good to make a new friend. Well, the sun's starting to go down, so rest up. Coby, take first watch, will you? If anything happens, start screaming. Otherwise, wake me up around midnight. Goodnight." Luffy shut his eyes and drifted off to sleep, not even bothering to hear Coby's response.
Nami, on the other hand, couldn't go to sleep, even though she felt exhausted. 'Friend? I yelled at him, threatened him and attacked him, and he still called me his friend? What kind of pirate is this guy?' She started sobbing silently, before eventually falling asleep as well. That night, she had dreams about a pinwheel, tangerines and laughter.
The Next Morning...
"Nami! Coby! Wake up you guys!" Luffy shouted, jumping down from the mast, where he had been on lookout duty, rousing his two neon-haired companions from their slumber. "We're approaching Shells Town. It's a Marine stronghold, so we need to be cautious."
"The Marines? Oh, finally. I can finally achieve my dream," Coby wept joyfully.
"Yeah? And what's that?" Luffy asked, taking a seat next to the small boy.
"I want to be a Marine Admiral," Coby replied. "Ever since I was little, I've always wanted to catch bad guys and fight for justice. But then, I wound up on Alvida's ship by accident, and after these past two years of service to her and her crew, I had given up hope of ever fulfilling my dream. If you hadn't shown up when you did, I probably would have been stuck with Alvida until she got sick of me and had me killed. So, I just want to say, even though you said you were a pirate, I am grateful for the opportunity you've given me. We may end up being enemies one day, but I hope we'll always be friends, Luffy."
"Shishishishi, of course we will, Coby. After all, my dream is to become the King of the Pirates, so my rival in the Marines would have to be at least a Vice-Admiral," Luffy said, grinning at the pink haired boy's ambition.
"Pirate King?!" his two new friends shouted, staring at him like he had just said the craziest thing possible.
"You realize that to do that, you'd have to obtain the One Piece, the legendary treasure of Gold Roger himself. In this Golden Age of Piracy, you don't stand a chance, Luffy. There's no way, it's simply impossible!" Coby stated.
"You seemed to be pretty strong yesterday, and you aren't a complete idiot, but to be the Pirate King takes a certain ruthlessness. I hate pirates. All they do is destroy things and ruin innocent people's lives. You seem different though, and if you gave up on your stupid dream, I'd even consider traveling with you a bit longer. But, if you want to throw your life away on a crazy idea like that, then I'll be leaving as soon as we land," Nami added, glaring at Luffy.
Seeing that they were both finished, Luffy removed his hat, staring down at it in his right hand. "I don't care," he said darkly, "It's not about wealth, or fame, or power. It's about freedom. It might be impossible, it might be stupid, but it's my dream, and no one is allowed to insult it, do you understand? If I die, then I die. It's as simple as that. But I won't let the thought of failure stop me from trying. I had two brothers once. We weren't actually related by blood, but we didn't let that bother us. We chose each other, and we were happy, for a time. Together, we studied, trained, and dreamed about achieving freedom. Sabo was a minor noble, trapped in a life of rules and responsibilities. Ace and I were the sons of major enemies of the World Government, and if anyone knew who our fathers were, we would have been executed for the crime of existing. But, the King of the Pirates answers to, and is afraid of, nobody. They are the most free person in the world. Sabo set out first. We had agreed to wait until we turned seventeen to head out, each on our own, to see who could reach the finish line first. Sabo and Ace were two years older than me, so they would leave before me. But, events happened that forced Sabo to leave early, or he would have been trapped forever, in the prison of nobility. We were ten when he set out. He didn't even make it out of sight of our home island, when he was gunned down by a Marine ship on orders from a World Noble. After that, Ace and I knew that piracy was the path we would travel. Two years ago, Ace headed out. He made a name for himself as the Captain of the Spade Pirates, before trying to challenge the Strongest Man in the World, the legendary Whitebeard. Ace lost, but Whitebeard let him live, and the last I heard was that he's now known as 'Fire Fist' Ace, the Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. And now it's my turn."
Ending that part of his story, he donned his hat again, turning to Coby. "If you want to be a Marine, that's fine. Just know that not all of them are good people. The World Government doesn't care about 'right' and 'wrong'. Their belief is that because they are in charge, anything they do is justified. Most Marines use this doctrine of 'Absolute Justice' to do whatever they want, claiming that their actions are for the good of the world. 'Moral Justice', on the other hand, says that good is a point of view, based on situational events. If a man stole a loaf of bread to feed a group of starving children, 'Absolute Justice' would send the man to jail for stealing, not caring what will happen to the kids because of it. However, a person who believes in 'Moral Justice' would see that same scene, and help the children find new homes so the man wouldn't have to steal anymore. Do whatever you think is right, Coby, just don't lose sight of who you are to do it."
Turning to Nami, he concluded, "And like I said about the Marines, the same goes for pirates. We're not all bad. There are two kinds of pirates, marauders and adventurers. Marauders are the kind most people think of when they imagine a pirate. Someone who rapes, pillages and plunders indiscriminately, taking whatever and whomever they want, and destroying anything they can't. But adventurers; people like me, Ace and Whitebeard; care more about the freedom to explore the world. We want to see new places, learn new things and follow our dreams. I like you, Nami, and I'd hate to see you go just because of what I call myself. But, if you want to leave I won't stop you. It looks like we're about to make port, so I'll end with this."
"Nothing is impossible unless you tell yourself it is. No matter how crazy or stupid your dreams may be, as long as you never give up on them, they will always be there, just waiting for you to reach out and touch them."
And Scene. This chapter had a lot of exposition again, and I'm sorry if that's not what you were looking for. I had originally planned to get through Shells Town, but then Littlest1 left a review that brought up an idea I hadn't even considered. The entire character of Jack, and by extension the whole first section of this chapter, came about due to her wanting to know if Shanks and Makino's night together was going to lead to anything. It was supposed to be just a little bit of fluff, and I didn't intend to do anything with it. But, after reading that review, I immediately started coming up with ideas, so I ran with it, and suddenly I was 2,000 words into the chapter. Then, I wrote the part about Alvida, which I had planned out. After I got Luffy and Coby to the boat however, I realized that I hadn't really explained Coby's story. So I added that in, then I just kept writing until I had this whole speech about dreams and pirates and morality. In the end though, I thoroughly enjoyed writing this chapter, and I hope all of you enjoy reading it. Feel free to leave any questions, comments or concerns. See you guys next time.
PS: There have been a lot of literary and pop culture references in this story. One Internet cookie for each one you find.