"Now Tell me about this pirate hunter guy! What's he like?"
"You mean Zoro? Last I had heard, he was being held captive at a Navy base and they call him pirate hunter or demon."
"Demon?"
"It's right, Luffy-san, Roronoa Zoro...he's a famous pirate hunter, like I said. He's a man who's chopped up bounties like a bloodthirsty beast! People say that he's a demon in human form! But beyond that, he's also a prisoner on the island, like I said. I don't know how you're going to even get close to him." Speaking of Zoro, Coby couldn't help frowning "So you must have no idea of taking him as a partner..."
"Come on, I met him a while ago and played against him."
"What?"
"He's not as scary as you say..."
"Hmmm, I was thinking of asking him to join my crew if he's a good guy!"
"Hahahahaha~!" laughs Kondo. "A pirate hunter on a crew with pirates...well, we won't lack for entertainment or good times, I suppose!" Luffy's laughter echos out across the open sea as well, much to the irritation of Coby who rapidly begins to shake his head, trying his best to explain to them all the reasons it's a bad idea. "Alright! Let's set sail for this pirate hunter, then! I'm eager to see what kind of man he is...!"
"Aaaah, this weather is so nice!" gushes Luffy, precariously perched upon the bow of the ship. Several hours of sailing across the open sea with nothing but the rush of the wind and the spray of the waves...it's such a nice feeling to Kondo, "Coby, how's our heading?"
"We're on the right course," Coby tells him. "If we don't lose the wind we should be at the Navy base island very soon."
The crying of the gulls, the noise of the docks and the scraping of cargo being loaded and unloaded...they've finally made port at the Navy base! They've barely even managed to finish mooring off the ship before Luffy is strutting up the dock as if he owns it, a grin splitting his face from ear to ear.
"Alright! We made it! The Navy base city!" shouts Luffy, attention of several passersby who quickly hurry on their way. Kondo follows up behind luffy, slapping him on the back before pushing forward. "Eh! Wait a second, I get to go first, Kondo! I'm the Captain so I need to be the one to talk to him first!" Luffy chases after him quickly with Coby doing his best to keep up with the two as they walk through the crowded, and stall lined streets of the city.
"Y-You two can't be serious!" cries Coby. "You're crazy to want him to join you!"
"Relax, relax! I still haven't decided what I'm gonna do, yet. I just wanna see if he's actually a good guy."
"He's been caught because he's a bad guy!" Luffy laughs as he snags up two pairs from a nearby stall and tosses one to Kondo who plucks it from the air. Kondo tosses a few coin back to the stall owner who catches them with a big smile on his face.
"Oi, old man, do you know if Zoro is at the base?" Almost immediately after the question has left his mouth, the people surrounding them recoil quickly. Kondo whistles in surprise, scanning the horrified faces of the people around them.
"Guess he's left a bit of an impression," Kondo says. They continue down the street towards the Navy base intending to drop off Coby with the local Marines...but they're surprised when the use of the base leaders name, Captain Morgan, provokes the same exaggerated response in the locals. Maybe it's not just Zoro who the people have to be afraid of. Regardless, the reactions of the locals seems to be infinitely entertaining to Luffy.
"Man, this place is really funny!"
"I understand Zoro but why would they be afraid of a Marine Captain's name?" Coby asks them. "I've got a bad feeling about this..."
"Well...maybe he's a dick?" Kondo offers, looking down at Coby. "I mean, being in the Navy doesn't change your personality. Or maybe they were just doing it to mess with us. It's pretty obvious that we're not from around here, after all." In short order, they find themselves standing before a large set of iron gates emblazoned with the word 'Marine' across it's surface.
"I can't believe it! I'm finally here!" Coby sniffles as tears being to roll down his cheeks. Luffy and Kondo walk forward towards the surrounding stone wall. "I guess this is where we part ways. It was only for a short time but- Luffy-san? Kondo-san?" He looks around to find Kondo boosting Luffy up on his shoulders, standing with his knees bent and and back braced against the wall while Luffy stands on his shoulders.
"Oi, what do you see, Luffy? Describe it to me."
"What in the world are you two doing?! Get down from there right this instant!"
"Let's get a look at this 'demon', huh?" Luffy says, scanning the yard in front of him.
"There's no way he would just be out in the-"
"Oh! There he is! Kondo, I see him! He's all tied up!" Luffy scrambles up, pushing off of Kondo's head to boost himself fully up onto the wall with a grunt. Coby approaches while Kondo rubs the back of his head in annoyance. Without warning he grasps the boy by the back of his shirt and jumps up, easily pulling the two of them up onto the wall. "See?" True to Luffy's word, there's a man tied to a post in the center of an empty field.
"A black hood and a haramaki...that's him!" Coby confirms. "Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro!"
Kondo said to Zoro there "Pirate hunter, I didn't expect we would meet again."
It had been days since his last battle with her, Zoro wasn't too surprised by Kondo's appearance but instead had a smile on his face instead of a smile "It turns out to be a [Demon, please, can you untie the ropes for me? I've been tied up here for nine days and I'm so tired."
Coby climbed up the wall again, shaking with fear, as if he had seen some kind of beast. Hardly dared to look at him.
"Okay." After all, sooner or later, in order to become partners, Kondo is ready to jump over the wall to untie his bonds.
"No! No! Absolutely not!" Coby instantly grabbed Kondo with a look of panic, "You are a wanted bounty now, if you let him go, he will kill us and run away!"
In East Blue, the mention of Roronoa Zoro's name is like a synonym for a demon, and almost no one doesn't fear the title "Pirate Hunter". Coby was even more afraid of this kind of person.
A Ladder suddenly pushed up against the wall beside them. All three heads turn to face it, watching as a young girl quickly scrambles up and surprises them further by actually shushing them before tossing a rope over the wall. She scrambles down the rope, and crosses the yard quickly to offer up something to the swordsman.
"You must be hungry!" says the girl. "Here! I made you some rice balls!"
"You trying to get yourself killed, pipsqueak? You should just get lost." The gates to the yard suddenly open, and a trio of men enter in. The leader of the group, a blond man in a purple suit is flanked on either side by a Marine, and approaches Zoro and the girl with an exaggerated swagger. Most of what he says is lost over the distance but his actions speak far loudly than his words ever could as he snatches one of the rice balls she's made and stuffs it in his mouth, only to rant and rave about using salt instead of sugar and summarily knocking the second to the ground and stomping it into the dirt.
It's an action that boils the blood of Luffy and Kondo...but the final straw is when the blond man orders one of the Marines to quite literally throw the girl over the fence. The Marine hesitates for a brief moment before doing as ordered, and Kondo immediately leaps back, catching the girl in the air and landing several feet away from the fence.
"Whoa there!" Kondo calls, managing a smile for the frightened girl. "You alright, kid?"
"Y-Yes," stammers the girl. "Thank you."
"Kondo-san, are you alright?" calls Coby, dashing in their direction. "I can't believe how horrible that guy is!" He kneels down beside the girl as Kondo sets her down. "Are you hurt anywhere?" While Coby tends to the girl Kondo approaches the fence once again, surprised to find that Luffy isn't hanging on the edge of it. He leaps up, clearing the fence with ease and landing on the opposite side where Luffy stands across from the bound Zoro.
"I hear you're a bad guy," Luffy says, confronting Zoro. "At least that's what everyone says. But being stuck out here like this for everyone to see...are you really as strong as they say?"
"I hear you're a bad guy," Luffy says, confronting Zoro. "At least that's what everyone says. But being stuck out here like this for everyone to see...are you really as strong as they say?"
"Mind your own damn business!" growls Zoro, staring the two of them down.
"If it were me, I'd starve to death after three days!"
"So…you were captured not long after fighting me?" asked Kondo after jumping after Luffy.
"Yeah, it was about a day or two after we dueled" he said then he glanced at the rice ball that was dirty from being stepped on, "Demon...before you go, give me that rice ball."
"Eh? But it's more of a mud ball now," Luffy complains, lifting the squashed remains.
"Just shut up and give it here!" Luffy does as asked, giving the rice ball to Zoro who scarfs it down without protest. "Thank you for the good." Luffy and Kondo actually chuckle as they walk away from Zoro...
Lead away from the Navy base and back to her mother's restaurant, the little girl who they've come to know as Rika, explains exactly how Zoro came to be all tied up. Apparently, the blond man, Helmeppo, runs rough-shod over the people of the city since he's the son of Captain Morgan. In this case, he brought a wild wolf into the city, and eventually her mother's restaurant where it proceeded to eat whatever it wanted, snapping and snarling at anyone who got too close. Fortunately for them, Zoro just so happened to be enjoying a meal in the restaurant and beat the wolf down with a bar stool before it could hurt anyone. When Helmeppo tried to interfere he even stuck down the man, who responded by threatening the lives of Rika and her mother.
Zoro was forced into a deal for their lives by allowing himself to be strung up in their place for a whole month. If he could survive they would all be free to go. All in all, it sounds an awful lot like nothing but a bid for Helmeppo to save his own skin and nothing else. After she's finished her story, she leads them inside just in time to be greeted by the obnoxious Helmeppo, who kicks his feet up on a table.
"I'm hungry!" complains Helmeppo. "Oi, woman, let us all eat for free!" Luffy and Kondo being their approach slowly. "C'mon! Quit dawdling and hurry it up! Aah, yeah! Now that I think about it, I've been pretty bored lately! So, I think I'm just going to execute Zoro tomorrow. I hope everyone is looking forward to it!" Luffy is quick to react, covering the distance in a few bounds and striking Helmeppo square in the jaw so hard that he flies across the restaurant and smashes into a nearby wall, upending several tables as a result. "W-What the hell are you doing?!"
"Luffy!" exclaims Coby, charging over and grabbing onto Luffy in an attempt to restrain him.
"Y-You hit me?! I'm Captain Morgans son, ya know! I'm gonna tell my dad and he's gonna execute-!"
Before he finished speaking, Kondo flew up and kicked him hard in the face, there were obvious shoe marks on his face.
[Congratulations on defeating your opponent, Exp 35]
"If you want to fight, fight, you talk too much nonsense." Kondo said while looking down on him.
"Bastard, I'll remember that and wait for my father to execute you all!" After that he immediately ran while holding his sore face from being beaten by Luffy and Kondo.
"Luffy-san! Kondo-san! Are you trying to get on the Navy's bad side?!"
"I've made up my mind, Coby! I'm gonna have Zoro join my crew...!"