Disclaimer: I do not own any of the anime/manga/movies/etc. that I write about; otherwise I would be a millionaire NOT writing on fanfiction publishing my own ideas.

Chapter 4

We find Luffy with his first and so far only crewmate Zorro on their dingy a few days after the Morgan incident planning their next move. "Ugh, so hungry," moaned Luffy. Well, planning in the terms of two knuckleheads that is. Zorro started to berate Luffy for his lack of navigation skills (hypocritical much?) while Luffy just said he was just wandering and asked Zorro if that was what he did as a pirate hunter. As it turns out Zorro had left his home to find a certain man and had gotten lost, so the pirate hunting was just to pay for his travels (again, hypocritical much?). This led to a brief argument between captain and crewmember before both collapsed on the floor of the boat with growling stomachs. They suddenly saw the shape of a bird fly overhead in the distance and Luffy got a clever (for him) idea on catching the bird to eat.

Spreading out his arms which started to sprout feathers, Luffy suddenly turned into a full blown red-tailed hawk and flew up to the bird. The problem was that the bird was a lot bigger up close and was able to snag the smaller bird boy up in its beak and started to fly off. Luffy quickly changed back into his human form but found his head still caught in the bird's beak. Normally someone with Luffy's powers would just transform into something too big for the bird to eat, but since Luffy is kind of a moron and also still wanted to catch the bird to eat that thought did not cross his mind. Zorro in a panic started frantically rowing after his bird-jacked captain. Soon Luffy found himself being carried to an island with a bizarre, circus-themed ship docked at the harbor when suddenly a cannon ball was fired, hitting the bird who was carrying him and caused him to crash into the town below.

Unknown to Luffy he just crashed next to a trio of pirates who were chasing an attractive girl around Luffy's age with orange-red hair and wore a tee shirt with a short skirt. The reason for the chase was that the young woman had stolen a map from the pirates that led to the Grand Line, and the pirates had to return it before their captain found out and killed them. As Luffy pulled himself up from the small crater his fall created and was wondering where the heck he was, the young girl suddenly started calling him boss and said she'd 'leave the rest to him' before running off. Luffy was trying to figure out what was going on, completely oblivious to the three pirates coming up behind him. Five seconds later the three thugs found themselves with their faces planted in the ground courtesy of Luffy when one of said thugs knocked off his straw hat with a punch.

Luffy turned and saw the girl from earlier sitting on the roof of a nearby building who introduced herself as Nami and was a thief who stole from pirates. She then asked if the pirate captain wanted to partner up with her. To which Luffy flatly refused before walking away. Nami quickly jumped off the roof she was on and followed the young captain asking him about why he got so mad at the pirates for touching his hat to which Luffy replied, "It's my treasure!"

Nami took Luffy into one of the nearby deserted houses while Luffy told the pirate thief on how he was separated from his crew. Name in turn told Luffy on how all the houses were abandoned thanks to the town being overrun by pirates led by the fierce pirate captain Buggy the Clown. She explained on how Buggy was a canon-happy maniac who once destroyed a town due to some local children making fun of his nose, and how it's said that he has Devil Fruit abilities. Luffy then asked Nami if she would rob the empty town to which she flatly replied no, saying she only stole from pirates and hoped to gain a hundred million Beri in order to buy a certain village. She then explained how she would use the map she stole from the Buggy Pirates in order to find the Grand Line and get the money from pirates there. Nami then repeated her offer on the two partnering together in order to gain Buggy's treasure.

Luffy, using his head for once, asked the red-head if she knew about navigation to which she replied, "Of course I know! Don't look down on me because as for navigation skills, well, there aren't a lot of people who know more about it then I do. Especially since I love the sea."

Luffy gave a whoop of joy and told Nami that his crew was heading to the Grand Line and asked her if she would join his pirate crew (idiot). To which Nami got a dark look on her face and said there was no way that she would join up with pirates. She then asked if his hat contained a map to his treasure and Luffy explained on how the hat was a gift from a friend that symbolized his promise to become a great pirate captain with the best crew on the ocean. Nami then told Luffy flatly that she hated pirates and the only thing she loved was money and tangerines. Luffy then asked again if she would join his crew to which Nami was again about to reject but then gave a mischievous smirk. Nami then told the chimera captain that she would join his crew, on the condition that he went with her to where Buggy is. Luffy, being none the wiser, quickly agreed and started to walk off, not noticing Nami grabbing a long rope and sneaking up behind him.

Scene Break

Buggy the Clown was a man in his mid-thirties and wore a colorful orange-striped shirt with an elaborate captain's hat that had tassels on it over his bluish hair, as well as a large red cape strung over his shoulders. He had cross bones tattooed on his face and red lipstick on giving him the appearance of a clown dressed as a pirate, but his most distinguishing feature was the red bulbous nose on his face that made him look even more clown like. He was about to execute the three pirates that failed to capture Nami when another of his crewmembers came up to him and informed him that the map thief had returned on her own. Nami then walked in with a hog-tied Luffy and proceeded to tell the clown captain that she was tired of working for Luffy and was wanting to join the Buggy Pirates, to which everyone present stared at her in wide eyed disbelief before the circus-themed pirates broke down in laughter before throwing Luffy, still hogtied, in a cage and welcomed there newest crewmate with an elaborate party.

Everyone, minus Luffy, seemed to be having a great time. Nami was drinking her new 'crewmates' under the table while having a mischievous grin on her face, thinking she'd be able to rob the Buggy Pirates blind when they all fall into a drunken slumber. Meanwhile, our favorite pirate captain who doesn't have a ridiculous large red nose (author dodges cannonball fired at by Buggy), was trying to bite his way through the bars. One would wonder why Luffy didn't just change into a smaller animal like a mouse to escape. Well, it could be that he didn't want to reveal his abilities to a room full of enemy pirates that could easily kill him while he's vulnerable, or the more likely scenario is that the thought never even crossed his mind. As Luffy was running up his future dentist bill, Nami walked over and playfully asked her 'captain' how he was doing. Luffy had a few choice words to say to the red-head, involving yelling at her to get him out and asking if she could bring him some food since he was still hungry.

Nami brought the boy a mouthful of food which he quickly devoured, and Luffy's mood instantly shifted to cheerful and asked the girl if she'd become their navigator again. After heatedly denying that offer, Nami told the chimera captain that if all went well she might free him after she stole the other pirate's treasure. Suddenly, Buggy stood up and announced it was time to punish Luffy for his part in stealing the map. After asking Luffy if he had any last requests to which Luffy asked to be let go (got shot down in record time), the clown captain ordered his men to prepare the 'Special Buggy Ball'. The crew brought forth a cannon and a strange red cannon ball with the ship's Jolly Roger painted on the front. Buggy decided to give his captive and new crewmate a demonstration of his power and had the now loaded cannon aimed at a row of nearby houses. As soon as the cannon was fired, the entire row of houses was reduced to a smoldering pile of splinters.

Satisfied that he had his 'audiences' attention, Buggy aimed the cannon at the still captured Luffy and ordered Nami to light the fuse to prove her loyalty by blowing away her old boss. Nami tried to look for a way out of her current predicament because; while she hated pirates and was a thief she was no murderer. Seeing the girl's dilemma, Luffy told the cat burglar that she made an oath and now she had to find the courage to stand by it. Before Nami could think on what she should do the matchbox was yanked out of her hands by a member of the crew who was becoming impatient with her lack of action and moved to light the match himself. Before the fire touched the fuse of the cannon, Nami pulled out a collapsible staff and smashed the pirate in the face before she could contemplate the consequences of her actions.

As the Buggy Pirates stared in shock and anger Nami declared that she'd never stoop to a pirate's level and said that a pirate took someone precious from her. Luffy commented on how that's why she didn't like pirates. The young captain then noticed that the fuse on the cannon pointed at his cage was lit and proceeded to bite at the bars with a greater ferocity. As the fuse got smaller Buggy ordered his men to kill the backstabbing thief, to which they circus-themed crew immediately rushed over to do. Nami tried keeping the attacking pirates at bay with a swing of her staff, but the pirates used acrobatic moves to dodge the strike. Nami noticed the almost completely burnt fuse and ran over, grabbing it with her bare hands in hopes of stopping the cannon from firing. Then four pirates tried to jump her unprotected back but a figure suddenly appeared and smashed the incoming pirates in the face with two of his sheathed swords asking them how many pirates it took to fight one girl. Luffy noticed who the stranger was and happily cried, "Zorro!"

As Nami and the Buggy Pirates realized that the newcomer was the infamous pirate hunter Zoro, the swordsman walked over to the cage his captain was locked in while berating him for being reckless. Buggy then appeared next to the green-haired pirate and asked if he was after his head but Zorro said his pirate hunting days were done. Buggy then declared that killing the recently turned pirate would make him even more famous and proceeded to charge at him with knives. Zorro proceeded to cut the man into three pieces to the shock of Luffy and Nami and to the growing amusement of the Buggy Pirates. The circus crew members proceeded to chuckle darkly while the Straw Hat crew demanded the key before breaking out into laughter. Suddenly, Zorro stiffened as it was revealed that a knife was lodged into is back by a floating hand! The pieces of Buggy started to float into the air and smugly told the shocked teens that he ate the Chop-Chop Fruit, so no matter how much he's sliced to pieces he can't be killed.

Just as Buggy moved to finish off the downed swordsman, Luffy said a taboo, "Stabbing someone in the back is dirty, you BIG NOSED creep!"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING BIG NOSED?!" screamed Buggy as he shot his hand holding a knife strait into Luffy's face. To the shock of all those present, Luffy was able to catch the knife with his teeth and broke the blade in half (elsewhere in the world, all the dentists out there gained a strange gleam in their eyes) and declared that he'd clobber the nose sensitive pirate.

Luffy then told Zorro to 'run away' and Zorro, understanding what his captain wanted, ran to the cannon while blocking Buggy's knives thrown his way and was able to flip the cannon so it pointed directly at the Buggy Pirates. Nami was then able to light the much shorter fuse and a portion of the roof they were on was blown away in the ensuing blast. Zorro ran over to Luffy's cage and was about to lift it up to carry him away when a thought suddenly struck him. "Hey Luffy," he asked with a steadily increasing twitch to his eyebrow, "couldn't you just turn into a smaller animal like a mouse to escape from there?" Luffy looked confused for a moment before gaining an 'ah-ha!' face while Zorro face palmed while muttering "Idiot!"

Luffy quickly shrunk down while gaining whiskers, rounded ears, and a tail before disappearing into the ropes that bound him. A mouse wearing a shrunken version of Luffy's outfit scurried out of the cage before shooting back up to human form. Luckily nobody but Zorro noticed the change as the roof was still covered from smoke due to the previous explosion. The two pirates grabbed their future navigator as she tried to see through the smoke and quickly bolted into the town. The trio stopped a few blocks away due to Zorro needing to rest his wounded body. They found themselves in front of a pet shop with a white dog with old battle wounds standing guard out front. Zorro sat down for a rest while Luffy was investigating the dog to see why it wasn't moving, only to get bit in the face after poking the dog in the eyes. Nami meanwhile was trying to figure out both why Zorro risked himself for Luffy (she thought all pirates were greedy and cowardly by nature and wouldn't hesitate to abandon a crewmate) and how Luffy was able to escape from his cage so easily.

Luffy was and the dog were wrestling on the ground when an elderly man with a poodle-like haircut wearing glasses and armor while carrying a spear came along and demanded the boy to stop pestering the dog, whose name turned out to be Chou-Chou. The old man introduced himself as Boodle, the mayor of the town they were in. After allowing Zorro to rest and recover from his injuries in home, the mayor proceeded to feed the guard dog and proceeded to explain why the dog was standing guard like that. Boodle explained that the store was opened 10 years ago by his friend who was Chou-Chou's owner; however the man passed away several months ago and the dog had been guarding the store ever since. Despite popular belief that the dog was waiting for his owner to return, the mayor claimed the Chou-Chou most likely knew his owner was dead and he was guarding the store because it was his owner's, and now his, treasure.

Suddenly, a terrifying roar went through the village! Panicked, Boodle exclaimed that is was Mohji the Animal Tamer and first mate of the Buggy Pirates. Nami and Boodle quickly hid behind a house down the street before noticing Luffy wasn't with them. They soon spotted the straw hat wearing boy standing where they were at moments ago with a confused look on his face. Before they could run back to grab him and or hit him over the head for his stupidity a man riding a large lion came into view. The man himself seemed to have white fur covering his chest and head that formed rounded ears on the top while wearing shoes with similar fur on them. The man stood directly in front of Luffy and introduced himself as Mohji the Animal Tamer before mocking the boy on how it looks like his friends abandoned him after their escape. Luffy simply commented that the man was wearing a weird hat, to which said man angrily pointed out was his hair (Luffy just said that was weirder to which the man told him to shut up).

Mohji tried to intimidate the boy by saying he could control all manner of animals and proceeded to try to get Chou-Chou to shake his hand only to receive a bite on the arm for his troubles. The man proceeded to demand that Luffy tells him where Zorro was and Luffy immediately said no way to. The lion, named Richie, jumped at the boy who swiftly dodged only to be smacked through several buildings by Richie's paw. Mohji was about to continue his hunt for Zorro when Richie went in the direction of the pet food store with Chou-Chou growling dangerously. With Luffy he quickly recovered from his ordeal having being hit worse by his Grandpa and proceeded to smile toothily while saying he'd clobber the animal trainer before asking Nami if she'd be their navigator again.

After meeting up with Nami and Boodle, who were both incredibly shocked to see he was largely unhurt after going through buildings via giant cat punch, the trio came upon a heart-wrenching sight. Chou-Chou the dog was giving mournful barks as the store he guarded burned, regardless of the fresh claw wounds on his white fur you could tell by the tears falling from the dog's eyes that it wasn't the physical pain that hurt so much. Luffy stared at the scene while remembering the old mayor's explanation on how the store was the dog's treasure with a dark shadow on his face.

Mohji was riding on top of Richie nursing a dog bite wound to the arm while the oversized lion munched on a battered box of pet food they stole from the store before setting it ablaze, receiving minor resistance from the little guard dog. As the duo continued their search for Zorro they came upon a startling sight, the straw hat wearing brat that Richie sent flying earlier was standing unhurt in their path. After getting over his initial shock, Mohji sent Richie to try and tear the boy's head off. Luffy, however, just smirked and said, "Let me show you how a real lion fights!"

To both the lion and tamer's shock, the boy in front of them started to grow till he towered over Richie while growing a large mane of black fur as well as razor sharp teeth and claws. The now human-lion hybrid let off a terrifying roar that shattered a few nearby windows and grabbed the other lion under the front legs while lifting it up into the air. "Lion Pile Driver!" the chimera boy roared as he planted the still shocked Richie headfirst into the ground, knocking him unconscious. The now terrified animal tamer stuttered out, "W…what the heck are you, you freak?!" The now lion-like boy stalked over to where the petrified pirate was rooted to the spot while cracking his knuckles and explained, "Long ago I ate the Chimer-Chimera Fruit, now I'm an animal man!"

Mohji tried apologizing to the approaching lion-man and said he'd pay whatever he wanted. Luffy was having none of that and growled out, "I don't want your apology or your money, because that won't bring back Chou-Chou's treasure," he gained a dangerous glint in his cat-slit eyes and roared out, "I CAME BACK TO CLOBBER YOU!" With that he reared back his fist and punched Mohji straight in the face, sending the man into blissful unconsciousness with his pet.

Nami and Boodle stood watching over Chou-Chou as he stared at the smoldering remains of the pet store. Nami commented on how all pirates were the same and didn't care on who they hurt. She then noticed Luffy, back in human form, walking up and started to rant against him about how this was how pirates acted and how he was no different. The straw hat wearing captain ignored the girl and walked up in front of the dog, placing a battered box of pet food in front of him. The pirate then apologized to the dog that he couldn't bring the rest of his treasure back but congratulated him on how hard he must have fought. The dog picked up the box and started to walk away but turned around and started barking what had to be a thank you. Nami meanwhile was busy pulling her foot from her mouth as she watched the pirate do the selfless deed. She went over to apologize to the captain about her outburst when suddenly the mayor started yelling how he couldn't stand living in fear of the Buggy Pirates anymore and how he was going to fight them now and protect his treasure, the village they worked so hard to build.

Suddenly, all the houses on the block they were on were blown away thanks to Buggy's 'Buggy Balls'. Zorro suddenly sat up from the wreckage that was once the mayor's house saying that was one heck of an alarm clock. The chief then started to run off in the direction of the Buggy Pirates and said even though he knew it was reckless and stupid he was still going to fight as his duty to the village and its people. Luffy smiled and said that he liked the man and wasn't going to let him die as he watched the mayor's retreating form. Nami agreed to come with the two pirates as 'temporary allies' and let her keep the Clown Pirate's treasure. The trio came to the center of town to watch Boodle being chocked by one of Buggy's disembodied hands. Acting quickly, Luffy raced over and pulled the hand from the old man's neck. Boodle tried getting up and said it was his fight so the kids couldn't interfere. However, before the mayor could perform a suicidal charge, Luffy knocked the man out saying he was in the way. In reality he was preventing the old man from killing himself.

"HEY BIG NOSE!" Luffy yelled up at Buggy, much to everyone in the vicinities shock and horror.

"KILL HIM! FIRE THE BUGGY BALL!" Buggy roared to his crew.

Red cannonball was fired and Zorro and Nami got out of the way while Luffy stood their looking confident. Before the ball could hit, Luffy was quickly covered with dark hair and a long tail shot out his spine while his feet grew opposable thumbs. The now monkey boy (ironic) was easily able to catch the speeding cannonball before it could impact and chucked it back at the Buggy pirates with a yell of, "Monkey Hammer Throw!" Everyone in the area was still reeling in shock at the boy's transformation and the Buggy pirates couldn't doge the inevitable impact and explosion. Nami asked what the heck was that and Luffy explained his Devil Fruit powers to the speechless girl. Before more could be said the trio noticed both Buggy and his second mate Cabaji the Acrobat had withstood the explosion by using their crewmates and Richie the lion as shields for the blast. Just then Mohji awoke and noticed the straw hat wearing captain and quickly explained his powers to Buggy. Buggy, in a fit of rage for not being told earlier, through the animal tamer directly at Luffy, who proceeded to kick the man out of his way.

Cabaji then charged at the crew on a unicycle and wielding a sword but was stopped by Zorro. The two proceeded to fight while Luffy kept his attention on Buggy (the fight between the two is the same so I'll skip that and go straight to Luffy's fight). The two captains prepared to face each other as Cabaji fell unconscious. Nami meanwhile was going through the rubble of Buggy's former base searching for his crew's treasure. Zorro himself passed out due to his wounds but not before correcting a misconception Buggy and his crew had about him and Luffy, that they weren't thieves but pirates. Buggy asked his fellow captain what he wanted from the Buggy Pirates and the chimera boy told him that he planned to use their Grand Line map in order for him to become the pirate king. Buggy scoffed at this notion thinking himself the better pirate and mentioned how the boy annoyed him, just like the red-haired idiot who wore a similar hat annoyed him years ago.

Noticing that the clown was talking about his idol, Luffy asked Buggy how he knew Shanks and where he was now. Buggy simply said he wasn't going to tell him and proceeded to produce spring-loaded knives from his shoes before shooting his lower body off like a buzz saw. Buggy noticed the boy was nowhere to be found after the buzz saw passed where he was standing but noticed a hole in the ground. Luffy suddenly popped up from the ground behind the big nosed captain (dodges thrown knife) as a human-mole and sent a clawed fist at the pirates head yelling "Whack-a-Mole Barrage!" Buggy was able to dodge the attack by quickly separating his head from his body, causing the mole-boy to just barely miss. Buggy then pointed his knife-filled hand at the young captain and shot his arm like a gun before Luffy could dodge underground again. Luffy quickly shifted to human and caught the fast moving arm before it could spear his head. The attack wasn't over; however, as Buggy then separated his hand from his arm and the hand nicked a side of Luffy's face. What really ticked Luffy off though was the tiny gash the knife caused on the rim of his beloved hat.

The chimera man yelled at the chop-chop man not to mess with his treasure but Buggy didn't listen and instead threw a knife at Luffy causing him to dodge but left his hat unprotected to Buggy's knife filled hand. The hand speared the hand and took it over to Buggy who proceeded to throw it on the ground and spit on it once he found out it was Shanks' hat. Buggy then told his opponent that he and Shanks were both apprentice pirates on the same crew as kids. Luffy then charged at the older man who proceeded to separate his head in preparation for an attack. Luffy had other plans and, while shifting into a minotaur-like creature, rammed Buggy's torso head on in the stomach, causing the head to scream in pain before rejoining his body. Luffy then sat on the clown's stomach, still in his heavy bull form mind you, and wiped the spit off his hat on Buggy's face and demanded that the older captain tells him how he knew Shanks. The man was able to wheeze out over his collapsing lungs on his time together with Shanks and how the red head accidently made him swallow the Chop-Chop fruit that Buggy attempted to steal and also caused him to lose his map to an undersea treasure overboard. He then told Luffy how Shanks was able to save him from drowning after he dived after the map, but told the boy he still resented the man for all he made the clown lose.

Buggy then separated his torso that floated up in the air and proceeded to chase after Nami who had just came out of the rubble holding onto the Buggy Pirate's treasures. Just as Buggy was about to skewer the thief, there was a cry of, "Donkey Dropkick!" and Buggy let out a scream so high pitched it broke several windows. Confused, Nami looked at Luffy who transformed his lower body into a donkeys and had kicked Buggy straight in his family jewels. Luffy told Nami to drop the treasure and run but Nami refused saying that it was her treasure now since she was a thief and she just stole the treasure, ergo it's hers. Buggy, in a much higher pitched voice, told the girl she wasn't getting away and proceeded to separate his body into many tiny pieces that flew all over the place. Buggy's head and hands went after Nami while the rest of him distracted Luffy. Luffy then noticed that Buggy's feet couldn't fly so he grabbed them and proceeded to tickle them, stubbed the toes, and pinched them causing Buggy all sorts of discomfort. While the clown was distracted Nami swung the sack full of treasure at his face hoping to knock him unconscious, but he unfortunately caught it. Before Buggy could counter attack there was a cry of, "Gorilla Pummel!" and Luffy appeared only much more muscular and hairy then before, and punched the older man straight in the face, knocking the sad excuse for a pirate out cold.

Luffy then went and grabbed the map of the Grand Line but before he could celebrate, Buggy had regained consciousness and his head started floating saying that the fight wasn't over yet. The nose sensitive pirate then called his body parts back to him but something was obviously wrong. The only parts that came back were the hands and feet, making Buggy look like a hysterical version of a midget! Nami then stepped forward and showed Buggy's remaining parts tied up into a neat little package. Luffy congratulated the cat burglar before going into his chimera form and sending Buggy flying into the horizon with a cry of, "Chimera Uppercut!" Luffy then asked Nami once more if she'd join his crew and she agreed to a temporary partnership so long as she gained treasures like what she gained from looting Buggy. Luffy then gathered up his hat, took half the treasure Nami told him to carry, and woke Zorro up from his nap. Before he could go wake the mayor up the rest of the villagers had arrived because they were concerned when Boodle hadn't come back from town.

After seeing the mayor's knocked out form they demanded to know who did it, and Nami tried to think of an excuse while Luffy (who can't lie to save his life) told them that he did it. The villagers then demanded to know if they were pirates to which Luffy confirmed before Nami could shut the kid up. Before they knew it, the Straw Hat Pirates were running for their lives to the docks and when Nami demanded to know why he did such a reckless thing he responded with, "Because the villagers love their mayor so much they'd get mad no matter what excuse we used!" The mob was halted in their pursuit thanks to Chou-Chou, who stood between the mob and the pirates barking furiously. They made it to the docks and were about to board their respective boats when three Buggy Pirates, who had a bone to pick with Nami for stealing their ship and treasure, came out. Things might have gotten messy but the moment the three enemy pirates saw Zorro they swam off like the Hounds of Hell were after them. Wondering what that was all about, the trio got into their ships and were about to sail off when Boodle, who had regained consciousness, ran up to the end of the docks and gave the pirates a heartfelt thank you for all they'd done for the village. The three pirates smiled as they sailed off into the distance.

At least until Nami discovered Luffy left the half of the treasure he was carrying with the townspeople in order for them to rebuild their town. After beating his face to a pulp and threatening to throw him in the ocean it he ever pulled that stunt again the three sailed off onto their next big adventure!

AN: Sorry guys for the long update. You all are probably tired of hearing this but I had finals that I needed to deal with, not to mention this is my longest chapter to date. I had to skip a few scenes because they remain the same as canon and focused my attention to writing about what Luffy was going through. I hope you all found this enjoyable and hopefully I'll have the next chapter up before too long. I'm also thinking on posting a few other stories but this one will be my main focus because I have a good grasp on what I want to do with it. Please read and review and I eagerly await the next chapter. See ya!