31-40 (New)
After the phone call, Luffy finally knew what he would need to do… Why hadn't he thought of it before… every one was saying he was strong… so the strength wasn't the issue.
What he needed to change was his approach. He looked at the nameless blade… walking towards it. Sparky already got down from his shoulder and stayed back.
When giving tips on how to better use Observation Haki, Ace revealed something odd… which was communication with his weapon with the color of Observation. It seemed while training with Rayleigh, Ace had picked up the sword.
It came naturally to him. Shanks teased that Ace was still not anywhere near a swordsman according to his standards, but for a brat who took the blade for only a year, it was impressive.
It seemed that Ace didn't just come to thank Shanks, he already challenged the Red Yonko and lost in his dual.
So Luffy seeing the opportunity asked his brother on his secret. Ace wasn't even hesitant and directly said that he was able to get used to the sword because of his use of Observation Haki. Being a Logia user Ace had to always work on his Observation Haki. And for a new swordsman, it should have been a drawback.
But Ace was able to make it his strength. He was able to communicate with his blade, it also helped that the blade he was using wasn't any ordinary blade.
So Luffy took a page out Ace's book.
He grabbed the cold steel of the blade, not even putting effort to lift it. He didn't know if it would work… but he had a gut feeling that this was the way to make the nameless blade his.
So he poured his Observation Haki in it, or at least tried to feel the blade was trying to tell him.
The boy opened his eyes with new conviction. "I am sorry for being weak all this time… but I promise you… now that I'm strong, you won't have to meet any humiliating defeat again. And that's a promising partner…"
With that Luffy grabbed the naginata with both his hands, and pulled it. The blade almost accepted him, but this was the blade's last test for Luffy.
"Haaa!" Luffy poured his will into the blade as he tried to show it his ambitions, goal his drive for strength. He didn't hold anything back, if this blade was going to be part of his journey then he would treat it like any of his crewmates.
"I will become the strongest!" Luffy yelled, as the ground beneath his cracked. His muscles were already bulking and red, and even his hair stood up, Luffy didn't know it, but he unconsciously released a wave of Conqueror's haki.
Sparky who was a bit far from Luffy felt the wild use of Conqueror's Haki, but it didn't make him kneel or put any pressure on him. No… this haki was derived from his ambition, and this was a power that wouldn't harm his friend, so the six-armed monkey only felt the raw strength and will of his friend.
But the others animals surrounding the island weren't that lucky as most of them fell with foam in their mouth. Even the trees that were near him coward at the presence of a king as they leaned away from Luffy.
"I-I have done it…"
That brought the monkey's attention back to Luffy, who was holding the nameless naginata on his hand. The naginata that was a bit big for him had shrunken to fit his size while a chain came out of weapon and wrapped around Luffy's right hand.
Luffy was lightheaded, the sudden use of Conqueror's was too much for him. But he didn't kneel, as he was able to support himself with it… no it seemed that blade didn't let Luffy kneel.
Luffy had a shit-eating grin on his face as he was finally able to feel the blade… it was asking him to be strong. Strong enough to fulfill his ambition…
And Luffy nodded. "So are you going to tell me your name…"
The blade hummed in response.
"Fine… be tasundra," Luffy mused, it seemed that the blade didn't deem him worthy enough to know its name it. "But anyway, thanks for giving me a chance… you won't regret it."
With that Luffy planted the blade on his back, the chains wrapped around his shoulder and waist crossways, making a place for itself on his back. "Huh, neat."
Only then did Luffy look around, and see the utter destruction of the environment around him.
"Hmm… that's unexepceted…" Luffy could see multiple birds and animals already knocked unconscious with foam in their mouth. He could kind of guess what happened. "But oh well… Sparky, let's do some training with our new friend."
The six-armed monkey was still at awe, but Luffy's voice broke him out. He saw the straw hat boy grinning ear to ear as he already took out Naginata from his back and was doing some light work with it.
—
A/N: With this, the first part of the story is over. From next chapter, it will be about Luffy starting his journey.
—
32
Straw Hat Luffy woke up groaning in the small boat, and he looked around. "Wha… what did I miss?" the boy yawned as he woke up from his nap.
The six-armed monkey on his shoulder was banging his rubber head, but alas as the monkey couldn't use haki, it was just a mere annoyance. But that didn't mean Sparky couldn't get his attention.
He grabbed onto Luffy's lower lip and stretched it over his head, making the rubber boy gasp for air, before pushing Sparky off.
"Hey! What was that for?" Luffy asked now fully woken up from his sleep. He rubbed his chin as he eyed the monkey, he half wanted to throw him over the deck. But knowing Sparky, he would come back with vengeance.
Sparky made some pissed of monkey sounds before pointing at the upcoming Whirpool. A flock of three twisters surrounded it… and their small boat heading toward it.
"Oh!" Luffy that was all he could say. How did the original Luffy get out of this again?
He glanced at the barrel next to him as it rocked back and forth with the waves. Should he try it…? Nah, that's suicidal… but tempting…
The scream of the monkey brought his attention back. Yeah, no Sparky is pansy today… well, he wasn't a fan of water, to begin with. And after eating one of the devil fruits Sparky was a lot more cautious about it.
Which really shouldn't be the case with all the water training we did. But meh…
And the storm was a bit too much, even though the heavy downpour wasn't a problem for him or Sparky, it was different for the small vessel they were on. Soon his small boat was going to flip over. He glanced at the barrel one last time. It was almost tempting.
"Wu.. Khi ki!" The monkey again pointed at the storm.
"Yeah, yeah, I noticed…" Luffy rolled his eye. As he stood up, he strapped both of his naginata on his back in a 'x' formation, while he wore a simple red shirt and blue jeans that were up to his ankles, with some leather black boots to go along with it.
Sorry, no indestructible sandals. Not my style.
His shirt was mostly unbuttoned showing off the impressive physique that he built over the years and the straw hat was on his back.
Sparky on the other hand had a small bag on his shoulder… well the bag was quite similar to the size of Sparky's two feet body-frame, so it might be considered large. In there was some of the essentials, a change of clothes, a small transponder snail, with the most important book for the journey, the devil fruit encyclopedia.
Now that he thought about it, he should have probably checked if Sparky's bag was waterproof was not. If not his cloth and the book might get some rain damage.
So he should probably get out of the storm. Regardless, he didn't want to risk it. It would not do for the future Pirate King to die at the hands of a tiny ass whirlpool like this.
So he took a quick leap off the boat, propelling himself over the waters with a force that almost sank it.
Any sane person would have wondered if he was losing it with this recent action, but sane people didn't last very long in the grand line.
After reaching the highest point of his jump, he took another step, and the air below him responded in turn, propelling him higher and further. He took more steps until he was cruising through the air at a comfortable speed.
Now, to get down to business. Where to East or West? He reached out with his Observation Haki, because of the storm, it was kind of hard to see. And sure enough he picked up some auras. Indicating to humans nearby.
So east it is…
Observation haki was weird. What's the difference between human aura and the aura of an animal. Not much really. Humans usually had strong auras compared to normal birds and fishes. But strong beasts or sea kings had even stronger auras. You just had to guess if it was human aura or not. Kind of like instincts to tell them apart.
As he got near, the sky started clearing up, and soon he was out of the rain, only after that he could see a ship. Well two ships. One was a pirate ship. The other one was a merchant ship. A small battle was going on.
Civilians from the merchant ships were panicking left and right, with the few brave people on-board trying to defend against Alvida. And damn… she's thick. Its comical to even imagine that this woman is going to turn out into a beauty in the future. But eh… who knows?
People were panicking with cries of misery everywhere. A part of him wanted to mind his own business. But that lazy part was kicked to the side as he moved in, landing leg first onto a pirate's head, giving him a cracked skull, drawing all the attention to him.
"Nice day? Right?" Luffy said, wiggling his brows.
"Go get him!" Some one from the pirates side said, as the group of cruel bastards pounced on him.
Yeah that was a mistake.
Luffy grabbed the nearest thing he could find —which was Sparky's tail, the monkey giving him a pissed off look which he seemingly ignored— before throwing him onto the pirates, "Sparky, I chose you!"
What appeared next was a comical scene of a six armed monkey, beating the everliving shit out of a group of pirates.
Sparky kicked the fist guy in his face, before using his face as a platform to jump towards the other, delivering a punch with his three right fist. Sending the body over to two other pirates that were charging at him with him.
"What the fuc— gah?!"
"Kill the monkey?!"
Sparky jumped and dodged, using his small fists and his bag to whip around the pirates. It took a while, but when things settled down, there was a pissed of monkey with six arms glaring at Luffy.
"What? You woke me up from my nap? Deal with it?" Luffy shrugged only to get in a fight with Sparky, with dust cloud and everything.
The onlookers from the civilians sweat-dropped at the comical scene before more pirates from Alvida's ship came aboard. And this time, Alvida herself, came with an angry glare promising pain to Luffy and Sparky.
"You been messing with my men?" The large woman said, before looking at the downed pirates, "Who the fuck are you?"
"Me? I'm Monkey D. Luffy?" Luffy declared, "The king of the pirates and the future strongest man alive? And this is my buddy Sparky…"
Alvida's eyes narrowed, wondering if the young man was stupid or not, "You have a death wish?"
"You have diabetes?" Luffy asked tilting his head as Alvida's eye twitched. Sparky who was on his shoulder burst out laughing, "What? That's a genuine question?"
The pirates that were on the ship, suddenly stopped. Some trying to hold back their laughter, while others gulping from the sheer rage that Alvida was emanating. But Luffy wasn't bother, he was looking around instead.
From the corner of his eye, Luffy could see a certain orange head sneaking out of the merchant ship with a bag of something over her shoulder.
On the pirate ship due to all the commotion a young boy with pink hair came. His jaw drop expression told him that he was there for what Luffy had said.
Alvida gritted his teeth, before swinging her mace and slamming onto where Luffy was, "Die!"
Luffy didn't even move as the iron mace came crashing down on Luffy. And shattered upon contact with his head.
The people around them had their eyes poping out of sockets due to the odd scene.
Coby saw that on his shoulder the six-armed monkey had covered Luffy's head with one of his arms and was glaring at the fat pirate.
'Wait… did the monkey shatter the giant mace?' Coby asked internally.
Alvida started to back away as her brain registered that perhaps she wasn't a match for this young man. And then she recognized who it was…
"You… aren't you the Hero of the Dawn Island?" Alvida asked as she took several steps back. The crooked pirate knew not to mess with a few people in the blue, one of them being the new bounty hunter who was rumored to have connections with the marine Hero Garp. His first bounty was a wapping 50 million berries. Of course, he would be strong.
"No way… You are Monkey D. Mario?!" One of them said said. The pirates that were afraid a moment ago, where not genuinely terrified. The civilians on the other hand were glad at the news.
But Luffy wasn't. His eyes twitched slightly.
"But wait… did they get the name wrong… didn't you say your name was Luffy?"
The six-armed monkey on his shoulder started laughing much to Luffy's frustration. "Yes, they accidentally got my name wrong…" he grumbled, "I regret making that joke…"
Rather then Alvida being terrified, she had a challenging grin on her face. "So you came all the way here to collect my bounty. This just shows how amazing of a pirate I am…" She couldn't even finish his sentence before a fist collided with the back of her head, robbing her of her consciousness.
"Yeah, sorry. I'm not in the mood." Luffy said dusting of his hands before pointing at Coby, "You there with pink hair? You a part of the crew?"
Coby blinked suddenly getting attention, and the boy almost shrunk down on himself. But now that Alvida was knocked out, he found some confidence to shake his head, "Uh… no. I'm just…"
"Save the origin story for later," Luffy said rolling up his sleves, while the other pirates gulped, "I need to crack down on some pirates!"
With that Coby saw how one young man stormed through the ranks of pirates, punching them out with ease. Some of them tried to fight back, while others tried to escape, but Luffy didn't let anyone go. When some of the pirates jumped back on the pirate ship, Luffy chased them, beating all of them with ease.
Soon enough, both the pirate ship and the merchant ship was full of knocked out pirates. Coby had his jaw on the floor, not being able to comprehend what just happened.
They don't call him the Hero of Dawn Island for nothing. Coby had heard about him. The grandson of the marine hero. No wonder he was strong. But why was he trying to become a pirate?
The boy's thought was broken by Luffy got a round of applause from the civilians. Thanking him for saving them.
"Thank you! Thank you!" Luffy said, from the pirate ship, "But could you guys do me a favor, I'm in a hurry. So I will toss the pirates on your ships, tie them up for me. I don't have time to collect the bounty on their heads. So you guys can cash them in."
Hearing that the hesitant civilians on the other ship perked up. And Luffy grabbed the few pirates that were on the pirate ship, and threw them to merchant ship.
After that Luffy looked around, and spotted Coby.
The pink haired boy in question gulped, wondering if he was going to get a fist as well. "I am not a pirate!" he hurriedly said, "The pirates kidnapped me a two years ago and forced me to work. I don't want to be a pirate! In fact I want to be a marine!"
The boy shouted out in one breadth before panting. Luffy grinned placing a hand over his shoulder, "Well, it's good to have a dream. But I'm kind of hungry… do you guys have any food here."
Even the six armed monkey seemed to perk up at the mention of the food.
Coby dumbly nodded and gave the way. Now that there were no pirates Coby was a bit more confident in roaming the ship. He opened the door and let the young man walk into the storage closet, where the food was kept.
"Um… we don't have any cooked food. Most of it, is eaten by Alvida. But… we do have fruits and vegetables."
"Wow, thanks kid… wait, now that I think about it. What's your name again?"
"I-it's Coby."
"Huh, cool name. Anyway, thanks Coby." With that he dove into a barrel full of apples and started inhaling them—that was the only description Coby could really use. If he was chewing at all, Coby couldn't see it. It was all a blur as he bounced from one side of the room to another and gradually emptied the supply closet of its precious food.
The six-armed monkey was no different. He even seemed to fight with the straw hat boy for the food.
And the young man and his monkey started expending enough to even give Alvida a run for her money in the fat department. The boy and the monkey were inflated balloons by the time he finished, before shrinking to normal size. There was some notable steam coming out of their body as they shrunk back to their normal size.
"That was a good breakfast…" the straw hat boy said.
The six-armed monkey shook his head, and pointed at one of his arms, there was an actually a small wristwatch there. A six armed monkey with a wrist watch, now he had seen it all.
"Oh, then… that was a good lunch." Luffy corrected himself.
Coby almost couldn't believe what he was seeing. Actually looking at the behavior the six armed monkey seemed much more civilized than the straw hat boy. And somehow that worked.
The six-armed monkey also wore some good clothes, a similar-looking shirt like Luffy and short pants. Looking closely he could see six small guns strapped to his chest. Those couldn't be real… would they?
The monkey also seemed to say something to the straw hat boy. "Wou wh…"
"Yeah, you are right… the food wouldn't last us till dinner we should probably look for a civilization to eat something…"
Coby looked at him dubiously and found the courage to speak for the first time since the boy's introduction. "H-How much can you eat? What are you?" The boy and the monkey looked at him and Coby froze, wondering if the slip had been a mistake. To his relief, the boy just laughed and the monkey just rolled his eyes.
"Anyway, the Marines will be here soon. So, I'm gonna leave." Luffy said, "You can try to join them, but it would be suspicious in this situation. In fact, they might just arrest you."
Coby blinked, surprised that Luffy believed him. He thought he was saving him to get to the food.
"Why don't you come with me for now? I'm going to a certain island, but I honestly don't know how to get there. So I also need some help." He laughed sheepishly while saying it. "But there's a Marine base on that island… So let's help each other."
Coby heard the proposal and nodded with enthusiasm. A part of his doubted it to be a joke, but Luffy didn't seem to be a lier.
It was then that Luffy realized he didn't have a boat. He had abandoned his to its fate at the hands of the whirlpool. The thought saddened him. It was no Going Merry, so he just shrugged it off. Still, a pirate should look after his ship when he can.
"You know what? Do me a favor. Can you check if the ship has any small boats or not?"
Coby blinked before he quickly nodded, and went to check for a boat. There should be a small one, in the back of Alvida's ship.
While Coby left, Luffy hummed thinking about something. Coby surprisingly had a strong aura. With his observation haki, Coby stood out quite a lot.
But Luffy was sure that Coby was weak then even a normal soldier. Meaning it was the boy's strong will that set him apart from the grunts.
Thinking about it, didn't Coby become a hero or what not in the series. With how things were set up in the story, Coby might have went onto became an Navy Admiral. And that was when Luffy realized something, 'I want him!'
But Luffy didn't know if he could make Coby change his dream. If it didn't work, he wanted to let the boy a chance to start over in the Marines.
Right then Coby returned with a sad look, "There was a boat… but some girl took it before I could. I-I'm sorry… I wasn't strong enough."
Luffy blinked, before frowning. Wait? Did Nami steal the boat? Or did she bring her own boat. Eh, it doesn't matter.
"Nah… Don't worry. Enough milk and exercise and you will get a strong body like me," Luffy said flexing his biceps, making Coby crack a small smile.
Now that he thought about it, Luffy was genuinely the first person to not ridicule or mock him. That… it had been so long since that had happened. And it almost made Coby tear up. Luffy… he really was a hero.
"We should look for a way out…" Luffy said, not looking at Coby as he wiped away his tears. Poor kid had went through a lot. "Let's get out of here?"
The pink haired boy just nodded as Luffy used his Observation Haki with closed eyes. The colors went away only the aura of living remained, in his Observation Haki.
The color of Observation was personal for everyone… everyone saw things differently using this Haki. If Luffy used his Haki with closed eyes he could see all around him, the shapes of non-living things and the aura of the living things, it appeared like a glitch to him. He could even guess the emotion they had based on how their aura or the glitch fluctuates.
It was quite an interesting skill.
And with his Haki, he could see an odd Orange aura that was trying to hide from him. And Luffy wouldn't have noticed if he didn't know what he was looking for. It was an aura of a female that was on a small rowboat, getting away from the conflict.
Yup, that should be her.
"Things should cleared up." Luffy said looking around as the civilian started to tied down the pirates. "Marines should be here soon. Hmm… let's hitch a ride." He grabbed Coby and nonchalantly jumped off of the ship and onto her boat.
Sparky seemed annoyed that he was left behind, but the monkey didn't complain much as he used geppo to follow Luffy. Of course, Coby was screaming like a chiwawa due to sudden fright.
With that all three of them jumped onto Nami's small boat. "Don't mind us…"
Nami's eyes widened comically and she gasped. She had been planning to get away while she still had a chance, but he had found her somehow. And did he just walk in air… no she might be seeing things… anyway, this guy…he was dangerous.
Also… is that a six-armed monkey… the thing actually looked kinda cute. But she wouldn't comment on that.
"Hello," the young man greeted. "Sorry for the trouble, but we're kind of stranded. Would you mind giving us a ride to Shells Town? We have some business there."
Nami calmly assessed the situation. She knew Shells Town was on the same island as the 153rd Marine Branch. She was planning to go there herself to investigate a lead she had acquired. Perhaps it would be best to take this guy there to appease him long enough to get out of danger.
He just single-handedly defeated a notorious pirate crew and trashed their ship. Having been far from Alvida's dramatic reveal of Luffy, she was unaware of Luffy's identity. So, she simply nodded in response to his request.
The obvious signs of fear Nami were showing amused Luffy. Also… she was kinda hot. But… she was seriously lacking the chest department. Eh... she will get big soon.
Seeing Luffy's eye oggled at her chest and the obvious disappointment on his face made Nami angry. "Hey, eyes up here, pervert!" But then she winched… she didn't want to scream at him.
"Uh… sorry, but there wasn't anything to look at…"
Nami seemed genuinely offended by the comment. It was as if someone had stabbed her heart.
And Luffy realized that he was being too blunt. "Don't worry, give it a few years… I'm sure they will grow big with proper food and nutrition. Milk will make those tites grow in no time..."
Coby felt a sense of deja vu for some-reason, and then he looked at his arms. His noodle-like arms.
"That's it, mister… I had enough." She said covering her chest with her hands. "Say anymore about my boobs, and you will be swimming yourself there…"
Luffy gave a salute, "Aye aye, madam Flat."
"Why you!"
"Wait!" Luffy said cutting her off, he stood up as he looked again towards the pirate ship that was a bit far away.
Luffy checked in with his observation haki. And made sure there was no civilians. Good… this could work.
"Hey, wanna see something cool?" Luffy asked with a grin, as he grabbed on of the naginatas on his back, "I'm gonna sink the ship."
Both Coby and Nami blinked. Not believing his words.
Coby frowned and looked back at his former home… he hated that place. But Luffy wouldn't be able to sink it now that they were this far. That wouldn't be humanly possible…
His eyes comically enlarged when the ship suddenly split in half in the middle as it started to sink. Looking at his side he could see the orange-haired girl having a similar expression and Luffy was already putting back one of his naginata on his back.
When did he swing his blade… he couldn't even see it. Just how strong was this guy? Coby gulped, he was glad that this guy wasn't one of the bad guys… Also, could he someday be as cool as him?
While Coby was running through his thoughts… Luffy was paying attention to Nami's expression more.
That should earn some brawny points right? It's been sooo long since he tried to woo a female of similar age that he didn't know if that's how it's done.
Also, he did this to show off that he wasn't just some weak nobody. And that she wouldn't need to be afraid of Arlong… and help was just one call away.
Of course, Sparky just rolled his eyes at the display of power… sometimes he couldn't get what the rubber head was thinking. But oh well, he had a good snack, now he could get some shut-eye.
The last time Luffy had put him on watch duty, this time there were more than enough people to keep an eye on things.
.
Nami's day turned out to be weird, and that was saying something. It was mostly because of the three passengers hitching a ride on her small boat. She barely had any space left to stretch her leg.
She was desperately trying, for the sake of her own safety, not to comment on the stupidity of a person actually trying to navigate the sea without a map, compass, or general sense of direction. Of course, it was the straw hat-wearing boy called Luffy.
"Don't worry, there's only so and so chances of me dying out of hunger, thirst, or even drowning. So, if it didn't happen, then it won't happen." Luffy said, without a care in the world, "Though I hope if it did happen, I wish my body would wash up to shore, rather than being fish food. Fish don't eat rubber, do they Coby? Shishishi"
While Coby was sweating in exasperation, and the six-armed monkey just rolled his eyes, used to his antics. The pink-haired boy wondered what he meant by rubber… Luffy had forgotten to explain his devil fruit powers.
"That's not something to laugh about you know…" she said flatly. Luffy stopped laughing and looked at her, blinking. Before laughing again.
She wondered if it was the same by had cut a whole ship with a swing just a few hours ago, the same boy that took down a whole crew by himsef, the same boy who also happened to be the so-called Hero of Goa Kingdom.
The pink-haired boy seemed to already idealize the boy, because of his saving. She also heard the boy saying that Luffy was the grandson of the marine hero Garp. She was almost sure that was a lie. Why would the grandson of a marine hero want to be a pirate? The pirate king no less.
Even the pink haired boy, Coby believed so, but kept shut. The journey took a while and in the mean time, Luffy had asked about Coby's back story, on how he ended up as a pirate. And Nami really felt pity for the kid. He had it rough. If Luffy didn't take him with him, he might have been captured by marines. So she could see why the younger boy looked up to Luffy.
She didn't know if it was the charm, but people felt at ease around the straw hat boy. And that was saying something. Nami just couldn't profile the boy's character. It was all over the place.
"No, I guess it's not,"
Nami just rolled her eyes. She wasn't a person who was always cautious around people, even her own shadow to speak… and yet she kind of felt at ease around the young man. Almost safe actually.
And it wasn't only her, she could see that the pink-haired boy being much more at ease as the conversation went on.
Had she completely misread him? So far since they set out he hadn't made any move that could be considered hostile. He had just been chatting amiably with Coby and the monkey the entire time.
Nami felt a bit frustrated that he couldn't get read on the boy. But, she also was very interested in his strength for reasons… Maybe just maybe…
"Oh, what's your name anyway?" Luffy asked, "I mean I can you by your nickname, Flat…" But the lady cut her off.
"Nami…" then she winched, why did she have to give away her name. Ugh… it felt like she was playing into his mind games.
Luffy nodded and accepted this without further question. Which was good in a way, Nami didn't want to give any more information away.
There was no point giving him any other information that he could potentially use to find her, and the chances he'd ever set foot on her home island were slim.
Speaking of home… the young man had displayed some amazing strength. But would that be enough? Nami was no saint that would shy away from asking help —even using her charms if needed— if things got done.
But would asking someone like help with her situation? She was almost finished with collection funds… betraying Arlong, might get not only her, but the whole village killed. Though for some reason, her gut told her to trust the boy… she didn't know why.
Sure, he was unnaturally strong, but strong people didn't necessarily have to abuse their strength, even if most did. There was an air of confidence around him, as if it calmed people down. So she had some hope that he might be of help…
But Nami quickly shot that thought away. No way a human could ever fight a Fishman. They were ten times stronger than men. 'Yeah, I am just going to give him a ride and be done with it.' she told herself, then blinked, 'That came out wrong.' But then she looked at Luffy, he might have a goofy smile, but damn that was a body.
She shook her head, her face heating up a bit. It wouldn't work out. And Luffy was aiming to be a pirate. She had enough of their kind for this short life.
Who knows Luffy might be more dangerous than he let on. But those abs though…
"Yes, take a picture will you." Luffy said amused, before putting his hands behind his shoulder, flexing his abs, "These babies can shred cheese…"
The girl hid her blush. And didn't say anything, just focused on navigation. Yes, because it wasn't like she was a pervert...
Luffy didn't tease her anymore. Comfortable with the silence. But it soon became a bit boring. So he started chatting with Coby, about what he wanted. One thing let to another, and Luffy was telling tales about how he beat the mount beast back in his home island.
Nami couldn't believe half of the things he said. And yet a part of her believed that it might be possible. He did cut a whole ship with a swing of his weapon.
Coby was awed the more the listened to Luffy's adventure. They weren't adventures per say, more or less fighting wild beasts. But still… such freedom.
That made the boy look at himself, did he have the courage to fulfill his dreams… to serve justice to the criminals… to help the needy…
Could he truly lead a life like Luffy?
"I wonder if I can be like that." Coby quietly said.
Nami glanced at him. A part of her wanted to deny that, but everyone had dreams. She was in no place to stop people from that.
Luffy shrugged. "No reason why you can't." He said, "In fact, why don't you accompany me on my journey? I can see great things in you." Luffy cringed internally at that stupid line. His recruiting pitch needed some work.
"Wha…"
Even Nami was surprised. To put it kindly, she really didn't see anything unique in Coby. A scrawny kid that didn't even protest his capture… that's…
"Hmm… do you have a dream?" Luffy said to Coby, cutting Nami out of her thoughts.
"I have a dream," he whispered. "It's nowhere near as amazing as yours, but I wonder if I can do it." He looked up to meet the focused gaze of Luffy, who smiled widely.
"Only you can answer that one!" Luffy said, "So, what's your dream?"
"I will become a Marine!"
Luffy tilted his head, "Just that?"
"A-a great Marine! Not just any marine. A great marine who follows the code of justice to the end!"
Luffy gave a solemn nod, even though he felt a bit disappointed, somethings never change huh? But Luffy quite liked Coby… not as a fictional character. No… it was because of his dream… and he wanted him on his crew.
"Oh, really." Luffy said, "Did any Marin help you get out of the ship? I mean the East Blue isn't that strong for having Pirates, excluding me of course."
The boy thought, it was a bit strange, that in his two years of staying in Alvida, no Marines ever came to stop her. There was always the talk one the ship that the Marines were increasing more and more bribes. But the boy's came out of his stupor at Luffy's next question.
"Coby, what's being a Marine to you?"
The pink-haired boy blinked at the question? "Umm… I-It's to follow whats right. To serve justice."
Luffy rubbed his chin, "What if being a Marine changes you… no shoot that… I know that sometimes the government forces you to do bad things to people. Then what?"
The pink-haired boy thought seriously for a moment before answering, "Then I will quit being a Marine, and do what I think it right."
"Even if it means punching a Tenryūbito. One of the world nobles?"
"Yeah, I don't care who it is," Coby said, the boy's lack of knowledge of what a Tenryūbito was a good thing. "I will kick anyone's ass, if it means doing the right thing."
Luffy nodded, while crossing his arms, "Bold, that's what I will say." He said, "But I will say this, things aren't always easy in this world." With that Luffy leaned back as Coby started thinking about what Luffy said.
As the journey, Nami became comfortable enough to ask some simple questions. "Um, Luffy?" He turned to her.
"Hmm?" he looked at her.
"Why are you heading to Shells town? What business do you have there?"
Luffy smiled brightly at the question. "I have heard there was a strong swordsman there… so I'm going to ask him to join me. His name is Zoro."
Two sets of eyes widened at this new information. "As in…?" Coby started to ask but trailed off. Nami recognized the name too. It wasn't exactly common.
"Roronoa Zoro. He's known as the Pirate Hunter," Luffy confirmed.
Coby broke into a cold sweat. "He's a friend of yours, Luffy?" Luffy nodded to him. The thought of the Pirate Hunter having friends sounded very far-fetched to him. But then again, Luffy did hunt a big-time pirate but a year ago… so maybe. But didn't he want to be pirate king.
"Not yet." Luffy said, grinning, "I was wanting him to join my crew…"
Coby silently wondered how someone who was aiming to be Pirate King wanted to recruit most infamous bounty hunter in East Blue. That just sounded like a betrayal waiting to happen.
That didn't speak much, but that's all he would get. Coby found the six-armed Monkey, Sparky was his name quite cautious of new people. But he wasn't any different.
At least the monkey had the strength to protect himself. Coby might be a coward sometimes, but he was not stupid. He had seen the monkey break Alvida's mace just by blocking with one of its little hands. And had seen the monkey perform the same air walking technique that Luffy used.
By his observation even if Luffy didn't do anything, the monkey would have been enough to take the whole of Alvida's crew himself. And that was saying something.
Were all six-armed monkeys that strong… he had seen and heard of some weird creatures. So maybe they were just born strong this way.
Coby didn't think of it anymore. As he tried to focus on the journey, at least by the day was over —if things didn't happen— he would be able to join the Marines.
When they finally arrived on the island, Luffy locked onto Zoro's aura. It was easily the most profound presence on the island, towering above the others.
That was pretty cool. But what made Luffy curious was another aura that was just as profound near Zoro. Now that was interesting… Luffy was already ready for things to be not according to cannon. The time-line would be similar, but not identical to the canon.
So he was curious.
The boat docked and Luffy was the first one to go off. Funnily enough, all of them followed Luffy like a mother duck. Including Nami, he didn't know why though. Maybe he made her interested… if so that was good.
On the way to the bar, he listened in on some conversations as he walked down the street, gathering information on recent events, one of which seemed to be the topic of almost every conversation he eavesdropped on.
'This is interesting, someone already broke Zoro out and took out the giant Captain… and here I thought I would be able to show off.' Luffy mused.
Someone had managed to break Zoro out from the marines and raise hell in the base, plowing through unfortunate marine soldiers with his sword sheath and finally knocking an enraged Marine Captain Morgan out cold.
And what's, even more, interesting was it wasn't a swordsman, but a swordswoman. 'Hmm… real interesting.'
The entire town had been stunned by the news. This marked the end of Morgan's reign of tyranny, and it had happened so fast. While the Marines were grateful, they were also slightly disconcerted at the level of strength the unknown female blade user had so casually displayed, as if it was a walk in the park.
"It seems someone caused quite the ruckus here," Luffy said.
Sparky got down from his shoulder, jumping onto a nearby housetop.
"Well, someone's eager?" Luffy said, with a raised eyebrow. "But I don't think you will find any good guns here."
The monkey made some sounds which Luffy translated as, 'Yeah, but I'm getting bored.' the monkey said, before going off.
"Impatient," Luffy said as he walked slowly toward where the monkey was going.
Sparky picked up the gun recently after learning about Observation Haki. And he was eager to see if there were any guns around the marine base.
Coby and Nami had taken to following Luffy silently, and now looked at him with confused expressions. And so Coby asked, "Uh… where's your friend going?"
"To find some new toys…" Luffy said amusingly.
Coby didn't enjoy the vague answer, but didn't comment on that. But he was curious about how people were interacting with one another. Of course, after seeing the large weapons strapped to Luffy's back, they made themselves move sideways. They weren't afraid but were cautious. Saying something along the lines of 'another Bounty hunter…' but they seemed happy almost glad.
"The people around seem cheerful today…" Coby said. "It's almost weird… is today a festival or something?"
"Oh, you didn't know?" Luffy said, "Apparently Marine Captain Morgan, who was in charge of the marine base here, was abusing his rank to oppress the townspeople."
Coby looked baffled and somewhat angry while Nami just narrowed her eyes, not really surprised.
Hearing their conversation a kind old woman looked their way, she was selling fruits by the side, "You kids seem to be new here? Want to buy something?" she asked kindly.
Luffy grabbed a small bag with enough bellies to retire the old woman for the day, "Sure. But can you tell me what happened? I'm looking for my friend here… his name's Zoro."
The woman blinked, refusing to take the money at first. Mainly because of the town's people viewed Zoro. They were really grateful to him, for going against Morgan. But after a bit assurance, she reluctantly accepted the money.
She went on explaining how Captain Morgan was abusing his powers. And how Helmeppo, his son made a deal with Zoro, that included him being locked up for a month with out food. Things happened, and it seemed one of Zoro's friend came to town and broke him out.
Beating the crap out of Captain Morgan in the process. The Marines decided to apprehend Morgan right then and there.
Coby looked outraged now. How could a marine let that happen? Luffy didn't really care either way. Coby seemed to be a good candidate for the crew. And he won't shy away from manipulating him to join his crew. What he was a pirate, a greedy one no less and he would get what he wants.
Coby went from being a scrawny rat to someone that could patiently be a Marine Admiral in the future. When he last read the One Piece manga, he was already considered a hero of the Rocky Port incident. He didn't know what he did there, but anyhow he made a name for himself, and that was the kind of people Luffy wanted in his crew.
Besides, the Marine and the World Government was a failed organization. One could notice it just by reading between the lines of newspaper. Luffy had done some research.
Did you know in the New World, some of the safest islands were those that were under Whitebeard's banner? Well, he didn't actually get that from the newspaper but from the information brokers in the black market.
And it wasn't all. The West Blue was one of the safest Blue's because of the Chinjao family or better known as Hoppo Navy.
Sure more pirates originated for West Blue than others, but it was safer than East. And that's because most of the island was under a pirate's protection. The world government only were out for the tax, other than that they turned a blind eye to the most corrupt marines in their ranks.
The only reason why the rumor about East Blue being safer than the rest was because of the government had spread. To symbolize that this was the blue where the pirate king was killed, this was also where the marine hero lived.
So joining that kind of organization wasn't any better than joining a pirate crew in his opinion. If Luffy were to be honest, even joining the revolutionary was much more beneficial for Coby's sense of justice.
But Luffy didn't want Coby to join other parties. Because the boy had some potential. He wouldn't go around with his crew to serve justice and all that, but after he established himself as the pirate king and the world's strongest, he wouldn't mind taking over the World Government.
While the canon Luffy was more inclined toward Freedom, he was more inclined toward Ambition.
After that all three of them started towards the general location of where Zoro was. The old lady wanted to give them them a bunch of vegetables as thanks. But Luffy bolted out with Nami and Coby.
When they arrived at the bar, Luffy noted that Zoro and the others had sensed his presence as well. They might have not known about Observation Haki, but a small burst of Conquere's was enough to make them stand on their feet with their guards up.
Did he have to do it? No, but he was going to make his entrance epic. All dramatic and such.
Luffy walked in, followed closely by his two traveling companions.
He stopped behind the bench on which Zoro and a female sat… no they actually were now standing on their guard. One hand on their sword, already ready to draw at a moment's notice.
"You must be Zoro?" Luffy said casually, standing carefree with arms crossed. The green head in question only narrowed his eyes.
"And you are?" the girl asked. She had black hair and fair skin. She wasn't your average faired skin beauty, had more of an athletic build. And she was someone that Luffy couldn't recognize from the show.
Well, she did look like Teshigi. But why would she be here? Wait? Was Zoro going to be a marine in this universe? That would be shit.
"You a marine?" Zoro spoke this time.
"No actually," Luffy said, a grin on his face. "I'm a pirate. Monkey D. Luffy… but not just any pirate I might add… I'm someone who's going to go to places." He jabbed his thumb towards himself, "the future king of the pirates if I might add, humbly."
The others present in the restaurant would have laughed at Luffy's declaration… but they didn't. Why? Because of a small burst of Conquerers, not enough to knock them out, but enough to make the eat any words they had.
Was he abusing his Haki. Yes, but he convinced himself that this was training in its own way. You know what they say, Never stop the Grind.
Zoro gulped as he looked at his friend, both of them made small eye contact. If the straw hat boy made any sudden moves, they would make theirs. Zoro knew the younger boy might be stronger than him.
The green pride hurt even thinking that, but if both of them jumped in together, he wouldn't have a chance.
"And what do we owe the pleasure?" Zoro's grip on the sword tightened.
"Heard you are the strongest around this water…" Luffy said.
Everyone in the bar had put their conversations on hold and looked on, including Nami and Coby. They watched apprehensively as if expecting a fight to break out.
"…and so I have decided." Luffy continued looking at Zoro and other women. "I want you in my crew."
There was a sudden pause before… "You want to what?" Zoro flabbergasted.
As the straw hat boy laughed, the tension lifted off everyone's shoulders. All of them let out a unified sigh that they didn't know they were holding. "Sorry for being over dramatic, but you guys seem really strong. So I wanted to do a small test… I hope you don't mind." The boy said politely.
Everyone around then wondered if it was the same young man that just a moment ago was drawing thick tension around them.
"Can I get two more rounds over here? It's on me" The bartender nodded, looking relieved, and poured two more cups as Luffy sat down. "Alcohol?!" Luffy frowned, "Do I look like a peasant to you? Bring me Milk! And it better be ice cold with no sugar mixed in it."
Coby sweatdropped, Luffy wasn't kidding when he said he liked milk.
If anyone had any complaints, they didn't question the young man's odd choice of drink. But now looking at the boy's amazing physique. They could guess that he was one of those health-conscious guys who counted everything they put in their bodies.
With that out of the way, Luffy moved his attention to the two blade users."Oh, why are you standing. Sit down." he began, "By the way, what's your name, pretty lady?"
The two of them reluctantly took their seats opposite to Luffy. "Kuina."
Luffy's eyes slightly widened, but he hid it well. "Uh, a wonderful name." He expected changes, but not this soon. But oh well, her aura was just as strong as Zoro's if not stronger than the green head. Well, she did seem a few years older than Zoro. Might be already in her early twenties.
"Anyway, I have a proposal for you guys…" Luffy began but this time Zoro cut him off.
"Look, we don't want any more trouble. The marines have already blacklisted my bounty hunter's license." He said, jabbing towards Kunia, "I'm pretty sure they might do the same thing for her, as she took down one of the marine captains. No matter how corrupt he was… at the end of the day he was marine. So we dont' want any more trouble."
"But that's awful…" It was Coby who spoke, "You guys didn't do anything wrong…"
Kunia sighed, "That's how the world works. As bounty hunters, we have to be more wary of the marines most of the time then pirates. Bounty hunting isn't as easy as hunting down pirates and giving them to marines… some marine check-posts don't even want to hand over the cash unless you put some pressure on them. So we don't want any more trouble."
Luffy raised his eyebrow, "I don't get it sometimes how gramps is still in the marine." He mumbled mostly to himself, of course, it was to let Coby hear it. "Anyway, that's why you should join my crew."
Both Zoro and Kuina frowned, but Luffy wasn't finished.
"Don't you guys have a dream?"
"Yes," both of them said at the same time.
"And if I may able to hear them?" He said politely, leaning on the table.
"To become the strongest Swordsman in the sea!"
"To become the strongest Swordswoman in the sea!"
Luffy's grin widened, "Bold Goals… and are you going to let some man-made rules block you from that path?" he asked, "You can hide like a rat in the east blue for a couple of months. Change your looks, take on a new name and start your occasional pirate hunting… but will that help you gain strength."
Luffy leaned in, even more, he had a sharp fire in his eyes, "Or… you can join me. I just don't want to be the pirate king. No, I also want to be the world's strongest man? You see I'm a greedy and ambitious man… I don't just want Roger's title, no I want Whitebeard's title as well. And like the greedy pirate I am, I want you guys be part of my crew."
Both Zoro and Kuina could see the ambition in his voice and a fire behind the boy's eyes. He had an air of confidence that said that he spoke nothing but the truth. And he seemed to be a man that would do anything for his goals. It almost made them admire him. Even if the boy was a few years younger than them.
"…I promise you strength, I promise you wealth… but I can't promise you, your goals. That's something that you have to do for yourself." He said, "I can help you get strong and make it easy for both of you to reach your goal. But it is only your conviction that will make you fulfill your dreams. So… are you willing to join me? Join the future King of the Pirates. The man that will conquer the seas and the land in between. The man that will be one day the strongest in the world."
World domination wasn't Luffy's plan. And nor would the two sword user care, but he had to make his marketing speech impressionable. "So what's your answer?"
Both of them thought over what Luffy had said.
It was true, after what had happened they couldn't actually continue in their line of work in the east blue. They could just to another blue, and forge new identities. But what Luffy said was right.
Their target were the likes of Mihawke and Shanks… and being here won't make them reach their goal. They could have tried to joined the marines, but they had too many limitations and rules… and after this incident joining them was not an option.
Zoro and Kuina knew the boy was right… but joining piracy. The two of them had some lines they weren't willing to cross… and knew that not all pirates were bad. And the strawhat boy seemed genuine. So the offer was quite tempting.
For Zoro, he had a goal to visit a certain island. And that island wasn't just anywhere in grandline, that island was too far for him to reach right now. He needed strength, and if that meant joining a pirate crew so be it.
For Kuina it wasn't something she planned. But was eager, she did have a history with a certain blue-haired pirate, and the straw hat boy did say he was going to challenge the Whitebeard pirates. So joining his crew wasn't a bad deal.
And unlike Zoro, she had the chance to start her journey a few years before the boy. And visited each of the four blues, only the grandline remained unexplored to her. And she had gut feeling that this boy would not only be able to sail the grandline, but conquer it.
"We will join." Zoro answered for both of them. And Kuina didn't refuse, "But I will like to challenge you to an official dual. You are strong, and I see no way of defeating you… but that my swords are humming for a hunt."
Luffy's grin widened, "That's the kind of thing I want to hear. It's almost as if it's a music to my ear." The boy snapped his fingers, "But only on one condition… no make it two. Do you accept?"
"Yes." Zoro grinned manically. "Anything for a good fight…"
"Not even knowing what those said conditions are?" Kuina sighed. It seemed that when it comes to fighting, Zoro was still as impulsive as before.
But she didn't protest, as she just crossed her arms. She also wanted to challenge the boy. The straw hat boy did have two good-looking blades on his back. At least one of them was a named blade.
"First, we won't fight here. Let's go to another island." Luffy leaned in with a whisper. That made both of them raise their eyebrows, but didn't refuse the condition.
Maybe the boy didn't want to show his powers to others. It was understandable. While others might underestimate and think that the straw hat boy was trying to isolate the fight, so as to not get too embarrassed while losing.
Zoro and Kuina didn't think that way. Their instincts screamed to them, to not underestimate the boy. And they wouldn't, they would follow their gut.
"…and for the second condition." Luffy added, "I want the two of you to fight me at the same time.
After that whole ordeal was over, the town's people came outside the restaurant to look at their heroes. Actually, they were already there, but after seeing Luffy enter, some of them left, thinking that a dangerous fight might break out. But nothing like that happened, so they came back.
Even Coby was a bit of awe at the appreciation that people gave them. And at the same time, he questioned himself if all Marines were like this.
He still wanted to pursue his own brand of justice, but he wasn't sure anymore. And also the fact that Luffy was pushing him to join the crew.
Luffy was the strongest person that he saw alongside Zoro, and Kuina. He hadn't seen them fight yet, but he could guess they weren't to be messed with.
Coby really wanted to be like them. Stand strong, bold, never backing down, and stand for his own beliefs. And he felt a bit of happiness hearing Luffy telling Coby that he had the potential to be strong. And Coby would have joined in if Luffy was a bounty hunter, but the straw hat was a pirate, and he didn't know if it was the right thing to do.
But there was also the fact that Luffy's grandfather was the marine hero. Maybe he saw something that made him dislike the marines. Coby might be a nerd, but he wasn't as naive as he let on.
If the Marine base in east blue had this kind of corruption, from Luffy's demeanor. He couldn't see the boy joining the marines. But it wasn't like he could downright ask Luffy about it. They weren't that close yet…
Pirates were bad right, they destroy villages, kill, rape and other stuff. And he already had some experience in that department, so Pirates should be bad… That's what common logic told him, but all logic didn't work with the straw hat boy. Maybe he should think about it for a bit before joining the Marine, maybe sail with them for a bit.
'Yeah, I should spend some time before taking such a huge step.' Coby told himself, 'Now that I'm free I can join the Marines any time I want.'
He watched in exasperation as Luffy devoured plate after plate of food. His body was gradually expanding before their eyes, and some had lost their appetites just watching the process. And he wasn't the only one, Sparky, the six-armed monkey joined in on the feast and started devouring the food.
'Maybe strong people needed more food?… Or maybe,' Coby sweat-dropped, 'yeah, logic didn't work with him.'
Zoro and Kuina looked at Luffy a bit weirdly, and… Nami… where was she? She was with them just a moment ago. Did she leave?
She did say she would leave after giving them a ride on her boat.
Luffy sighed in contentment and stood up, his round physique sagging in response to the action. The same thing happened to the six-armed monkey who gained a foot in height due to his bulging stomach.
A few bystanders wondered how this was possible. When Luffy's face scrunched up in concentration and his round physique rebounded into his moderate muscular figure, muscles bulging as if the mass had been redirected. Red hot steam coming out of him.
The bystanders gave up trying to make sense of anything they were seeing. "Aaahh, that's better. Kami-e really helps with quick digestion…" Luffy said in satisfaction, "And… I feel like I can beat a sea king right now. I digested it too much, too soon."
Coby and the other sweatdropped.
Kuina spoke, "Are you guys staying here for a while? It's will get dark if you want to go to another island."
Luffy glanced at her then back to Coby and grinned. "Actually, we're going out to sea. Zoro and you will be my first crewmate. Or at least human crewmate, Sparky has you beat there…"
The monkey in question rolled his shoulder. It was weird seeing a six-armed monkey rolling his shoulder. Did it have two shoulders or six?
"We didn't join your crew yet… you have to show us that you are at least strong enough to become my captain." Kuina said crossing her arms. "You are overwhelmingly underestimating us… against two of us you wouldn't stand a minute."
Luffy just smiled amused as he leaned back on his chair, "We'll see."
"Two former pirate hunters joining a pirate…" Luffy said, "I find it quite the tail…"
Coby still tried to wrap his mind around the two Pirate Hunters becoming a pirate.
"Anyway, we should head for the next island." Zoro said, "the sooner we can fight, the sooner we can get rid of you or join you…"
"Ow, your such a cold sourpuss, Zoro." Luffy whined back to his comedic demeanor.
Coby just sighed. This was the time to make a decision. "So, when do we set sail, Luffy?" he said.
"Just as soon as we get a ship that can take us," Luffy grinned hearing it from the boy.
Coby facepalmed. He almost forgot that Nami was gone… Oh, he also wanted to be clear with Luffy, "Uh… I hope you don't mind, but I'm not actually joining your crew yet." The boy clarified, a bit nervous. "If it's not a problem with you… I want to accompany your journey and see a bit more of the world. Before making a decision."
Coby was almost proud of himself that he said that without stuttering even once. But he had to stand up for his own believes, if he wanted to fulfill his dreams in the wide sea.
"Uw… come on Coby, not you too." Luffy whined like a baby. That went better than expected. "But hey, at least now you are following your dreams. Shishishi."
Coby smiled, "t-thanks. But we need to get a boat first."
"I think I can fix the issue." Kuina said, "The marines want us to leave the island anyways, so we can all take my boat… it should be able to house all of us for a trip to the nearest island."
She was actually not present when Zoro was captured by the marines. No, she got a cue from the bounty hunter association that he would be near these islands. It had been two years since they last met, so she wanted to meet him as well.
She had already gone and visited her father beforehand. As she was planning to venture into the grandline all by herself. So she wanted to meet one of her childhood friends and rival before going on the dangerous journey.
But having found no clue after a week of searching, even after getting the cue, she came here to Shells Town to refill her rations. But then things happened and she found out about what the Marines were scheming. And had no choice but to get involved.
So she did have a decent boat for the journey, she would, of course, have to sell it as there was no chance that the small dingy would make her cross to the grandline. But it could be used for nearby visits. "Anyhow where do you want to go…"
"Orange Town!"
Without further ado, they set sail for the place they knew to be called Orange Town. To meet a future Yonko of the sea…