Chapter 1: One with the Wind

I do not own One Piece.

Wealth, fame, and power. The King of the Pirates, Gold Roger, attained everything this world has to offer. The words he uttered right before his death drove people to the seas. "My treasure? If you want it, you can have it! Find it! I left everything this world has to offer there." And so, people flooded the Grand Line by the thousands in pursuit of their dreams. The world has truly entered a Great Pirate era.

Years later we find ourselves in Fusha Village. It is located on Dawn Island in the East Blue where a certain raven-haired kid wants to prove how tough he is to the pirates he looks up to, the Red Hair Pirates. He was standing on the bow atop the ship's figurehead with a knife in his hand. "Oh Luffy, what are you doing?" asked Shanks, the captain of the Red Hairs. "I'm serious! I'm so pissed! I'm gonna prove it to you!" He then proceeded to stab himself right under his left eye. "OWWW!" he screamed. "LUFFY YOU IDIOT!" they all shouted. Sometime later they were in Makino's bar in the village where most of if not all of Shank's crew were partying and getting drunk off their asses meanwhile Luffy was sitting at the bar soaking up the ambient good mood after Makino just finished bandaging his new wound. "There you go, it will heal Luffy, but it will probably leave a scar." She spoke. "It's fine. It didn't really hurt." 'After all scars make a guy look cool or at least that's what grandpa says' Luffy thought. "That's a lie! Don't do such stupid things!" Shanks yelled at him. But he really wasn't listening. "I'm not scared of getting hurt! Take me on your next voyage, Shanks!" He thought he could convince him, but it was a moot point. Shanks opened his rebuttal by laughing, "You idiot, you don't have what it takes to be a pirate Luffy. You're like an anchor in the water which is a pretty big weakness for a pirate to have if you ask me." Shanks said smugly.

"Who cares?! I'll just stay on land then and plus I've been training hard; my punches are strong as pistols!" He then mimed throwing punches in the air in front of him. But Shanks wasn't convinced as he took a sip of sake and barely gave him his attention. "OH, TAKE ME SERIOUSLY TEME!''

"Come on captain, one voyage won't hurt, will it?" Lucky Roo asked. He and a good number of the crew didn't think it would be that much of a hassle. Worst case scenario they would have to protect the kid when they went back to the Grand Line.

"Fine, I'll take him if one of you stays behind in his place." Shanks said already knowing the response he would get.

"Well, that's that. Let's get drunk!" They all shouted in affirmation and went back to celebrating. "What kind of friends are you guys?!" Luffy yelled while glaring angrily at the pirates he thought would have his back.

"Look Luffy you're still a kid. Give it another 10 years then maybe I'll consider taking you out to sea." Shanks tried to placate Luffy after all he understood his excitement. He was but a boy himself when he was aboard the Oro Jackson many years ago. Luffy wasn't budging though.

"Damn it, Shanks, I'm not a kid anymore!" he shouted.

"Calm down, look, here have some juice." He said sliding a glass of juice down to Luffy who snatched it up instantly. He thanked Shanks and gulped it down in one swallow.

"HAHAHA, you really are just a little squirt. Look at him drinking his juice!" Shanks said which caused the entire crew to erupt in laughter right alongside him. He proceeded to taunt Luffy even more by suggesting a "weaker" drink like milk or water. This caused him to get up and walk to the end of bar to sit next to Ben Beckman, Shanks' First Mate. "Stupid Shanks making fun of me." He said in frustration. Ben suggested to him after hearing this, "Luffy, you got to try to understand the captain's feelings." He said taking a drag from his cigarette.

"What do you mean?" He asked genuinely confused with the concept of feelings. "Yes. Shanks is the leader of a pirate crew. You make think we're cool and nice to be around. But there are places in the world where people despise pirates. It can get dangerous, and Shanks is responsible for every crewmember's wellbeing. If you got hurt because he let you on his ship, he would never forgive himself." He finished then took another drag.

Luffy looks down in contemplation after listening to Ben. With the little time Shanks in his crew spent in his home village he that Ben Beckman was the most sensible person on the crew and what he was saying made since. Sailing on the seas is a dangerous thing and being a pirate makes it 100x more so. At the other end of the bar Makino had just brought out another barrel of booze for her current patrons. She looked at Shanks, "You shouldn't tease him so much captain; you know he looks up to you." He chuckled, "I can't help it, making fun of him brings me so much joy." Before Luffy could kick up another fuss Makino offered him some food which he happily took, and she could only look at him and giggle to herself. 'He really is just an adorable little kid no matter what he says' she thought to herself.

"You can put on my treasure tab Makino. I promise to pay you back." Luffy said while stuffing his face with meat. "What treasure, are lying again brat?" Shanks questioned teasingly.

"No, I'm not. I'm gonna be a pirate and pay her back with the treasure and money I find." He said still scarfing down steak after steak.

"It's ok Luffy, I'll be waiting for the day you pay in full." Makino replied happily coming from the kitchen with more food for him. "Thanks Makino, you're the best." He said and started digging in immediately. He asked Shanks, "So how long are you gonna be staying?" while trying to tear through the tough piece of meat. "We'll set off a couple more times, then head back north. Luffy tried not to show he was disappointed. He really liked spending time with Shanks and his crew.

"Well, when you come back, I'll have already to learn how to swim by then," he said with determination.

The camaraderie was suddenly brought to a halt when both doors to the establishment were thrown open, catching everyone who was inside's attention. A group of filthy looking men walked into to the bar looking worse for wears, but they all were armed in some form of another, so they gave off a menacing vibe. "So, these are pirates, huh?" The man who appeared to be the leader said. He looked around the bar at all the various faces staring back at him after he interrupted their partying. "They all look pretty weak and dumb to me." He said not caring that they could hear his insult or the fact they outnumbered them. He walked past them and up to the bar in front of Makino and next to Shanks. "We're mountain bandits; we aren't here to cause trouble. We just want to buy some sake. Ten barrels should do." He requested arrogantly.

Makino rubbed the back of her head nervously, "Sorry but we've run out of sake. He looked around and gestured to the pirates, "Oh, then what are all these idiot pirates drinking, water?"

"They are drinking sake but that's all we had left." She replied good-natured like.

Luffy had tuned out all the adults around him as he was still hungry after finishing off two plates of steaks. He looked around for something resembling dessert when he saw a small wooden chest with golden metal lining the edges and curves sitting in front of him. He opened it and saw what he assumed was a kind of fruit. It was green and shaped like an orb and had a stem coming from the top. It looked exotic with all the swirls going over it. 'Yoshi, this thing must be pretty good if it's locked in this chest.' He picked it up and took a large bite out of it and immediately regretted it. It tasted very sour and had an airy taste to it. It had to be worst thing he had ever even but luckily, he still had some juice to wash it down right away. He broke out of his own little bubble when he saw the bandit break a bottle over Shanks head but what really surprised him was the black sheen that was on his head for a few seconds, 'That was weird, what the heck was that?' he thought.

He then took out his bounty, "Oh, look at this. My name is Higuma, I've killed fifty-six people and I have an 8 million Beli bounty on my head." He boasted loudly hoping to make this guy realize who he was dealing with. Instead, Shanks ignored him and started picking up the broken glass pieces with Makino. "Makino, sorry about the mess. Do you have a mop or something to clean this up. Hearing this, Higuma took out his sword and shattered the rest of the bottles on the countertop. "There, you like cleaning so much why don't you clean those up to." He started laughing while turning to leave with his group. "See you later you bunch of chickens." They then proceeded to leave out of the bar. After a few moments of silence, the crew burst into laughter.

"HAHAHA, he got you good captain!" Lucky Roo yelled cheerfully, causing even more laughter from everyone including Shanks. All the while Luffy was standing there getting angrier by the second. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?! You should have fought back! What kind of man are you letting him treat you like that!" He was now holding on to the hem of Shanks' shirt. Shanks stood up causing him to let him go, "Don't worry it's just some sake, nothing to get worked up about." He said dusting off his clothes. After he said that Luffy couldn't believe what he heard. Was Shanks just a coward? He turned to leave when Shanks grabbed his arm, "Come on, don't leave." But Luffy wasn't having it. "Let me go you coward!" He yelled while running towards the door. Shanks tried to tug his arm when suddenly his hand went through it. "EH?!" His outburst caused Luffy and his crew to turn and see what was going on. When he looked, he saw that a part of his arm was transparent and flowing in the air. Now it was everyone else's turn to shout in surprise, but Lucky Roo was the first to break the stupor. "Captain look, it's gone!" He said while holding up the same chest Luffy took the fruit from. Shanks recognized it immediately, so he grabbed Luffy by the shoulders and knelt to be eye to eye with him. Oh, Luffy did you eat what was in that chest?!" He nodded his head, "Yeah, I thought it was dessert or something, but it was the worst thing I've ever tasted.

"You idiot, that was a devil fruit! If you eat one you gain a special power but in return, you are forever hated by the sea. You lose the ability to swim!" he explained to the kid.

"EH, no way! How am I gonna be a pirate now!? Luffy shouted. While everyone was freaking out Ben had asked Lucky to draw a picture of the devil fruit to confirm something. He took it over to Luffy, "Hey, Luffy look at this, is this the fruit you ate?" Luffy scanned the picture and shook his head in the negative, "No, the one I ate was shaped like that and had swirls, but it was green like really light green." This didn't just surprise Ben and Lucky, but Shanks as well, 'That's impossible, I know for a fact that I had the Gomu Gomu no Mi when I put it in that chest. What the hell is going on?' "Shanks, what will do next?" asked Ben Beckman.

"We could show him how to use it, you know, so he doesn't hurt himself or others." Lucky Roo suggested still eating on a giant drum of meat. "Fine, Ben for the next week you'll stay behind and help the anchor, Red Haired Pirates, Let's Go!" Shanks yelled running out the bar with the crew following close behind, "Tch, He is always so troublesome to deal." Ben said pinching his forehead trying to relieve the incoming stress from dealing with a seven-year-old for a week. He looked and Luffy who was staring at him expectantly with those big puppy dog eyes that all kids seem to naturally possess. He sighed, "Alright, come on we're going to the forest to figure this out away from prying eyes and so we can minimize damage." Ben said firing up another cigarette and leaving the bar with Luffy trailing behind him smiling from ear to ear, "Yoshi, I'm gonna be trained by a real pirate." 'This kid is so easygoing. He reminds me too much of you, captain.' Ben thought while walking with Luffy through the village to get to the forest. Luffy was all smiles and jumping around about being taught by a pirate. What he didn't know is that Shanks was going to a specific village in the East Blue to make an absurd request.

Shimotsuki Village

Off the coast of the village there was an old man with a large, thick unibrow that jutted to the sides of his face, a ponytail over a tuft of gray, white hair and a beard framing his jawline. He had a scar on his left temple as well. He spent most of his time alone and fishing off this coastline, but lately one if the villagers has been pestering him. He was annoyed by the kid at first until he eventually warmed up to his company. He even gave him the last two swords he forged and told him about his greatest creation, The King of Hell, Enma. He was going to continue chatting with the boy when he felt a strong presence approach them, 'Who the hell is coming this way? Did they send someone here after all these years?' He looked at the green-haired boy, "Oi brat, get down below this cliff. Right Now. "Huh? Why would I do tha-" "JUST SHUT UP AND GET DOWN THERE NOW ZORO!" The kid was shocked because not only did the chill old guy just get angry with him, but he also knew his name.

"Uh, ok." The now named Zoro hurriedly ran down the hill and hid in the underside of the cliff right below the old man and his fishing line. He then heard footsteps approaching until they seemed to stop right by the old man. "Oi, old-timer I'm surprised it was this easy to find you." Shanks said casually.

"You found me because I wasn't hiding, you brat. Now leave. I know what you want, and my answer is no." The old man said smoking from his pipe. "Come on, it's not like I'm asking you to do this for free. I can pay you however you wish or do you a favor." The old man furrowed his brow in contemplation. He did need one favor done.

"Fine. Leave your blueprints and I'll do my best, but I'm warning my work isn't what it used to be. I'm also a bit curious. The sword on your hip is very well crafted so why do you need another one?" The old man asked. This made Shanks laugh.

"I think you'll be motivated to put your all into this one. The person I want this made for has the potential to turn this world upside down," Shanks finished with his killer smile. At this point Zoro had peaked over the ridge to see what was going on, 'Who the hell is this guy? He looks so strong and that sword. This guy is a real swordsman who's done battle.' He thought staring at the man in awe.

"Hmm, I've heard that before. What makes you so sure?" The old man asked.

"Because I'd put my life on the line to prove it," Shanks said with conviction. The old man studied his face for any signs of uncertainty or weakness. There weren't any.

"Fine I'll make it and name it myself. As for the favor I need, you'll find a katana near the farthest dojo deep within the village. I need you to take that sword to 'The Beginning" for me," he asked. Shanks chuckled, "Seems like I'm the not only one who's putting faith in the next generation."

"Please, I'm hoping someone can make it feel at home since no one here can," he said turning back to the coast to continue fishing. Shanks turned to walk back to his ship and crew.

"When you finish your latest masterpiece have it sent to Fusha Village. Preferably to the mayor if possible. When he was sure he was gone Zoro climbed back up top, "Oi old man, who was that guy?" He merely smiled and said, "An emperor kid, a special kind one at that." 'If someone like him is betting the future on someone else, he must really be something.

A few minutes later Shanks made it back to the Red Force with Lucky Roo and the rest of his crew. "Captain is he gonna help you out?" he asked, still eating on his large drum of meat.

"Yeah. We just have to do him a favor when we head back to the Grand Line. Let's prepare to set sail." He then walked to the bow of the ship as the crew moved about undoing the rigs and furling the sails getting ready to depart. 'Luffy, I have a gift for you. I hope you like it.'

One Week Later

Luffy was sitting at Makino's Bar eating a good helping of meat and vegetables while sporting a few bruises on his head and arms, "I hope Ben isn't being too hard on you Luffy." she said worriedly.

"No, it's fine. Old man Ben is super tough, but I've figured some stuff out about my powers because if him. I'm pretty sure my punch is as strong as a pistol now. Shishishi." He said while laughing. Then his mood turns sour, "I'm still mad at Shanks though. I didn't think he was coward that lets people walk over him."

"Are you sure about that Luffy? I think it takes more courage not to fight." Makino said while polishing some dishes. Luffy still didn't get it though. "I don't know. I think a man is always supposed to stick up for himself no matter what." He said in between eating and gulping down his juice. "I wanted to kick their asses for messing with Shanks." Luffy said angrily. Just when she was about to say something else to try to comfort him the doors to the bar were swung open, startling the few customers who were inside.

"Make way for the terror of the highlands!" The mountain bandits from a week ago came in with his fellow bandits following behind them. "No pirates in today. Good, this place smells fresher." He sat at a table with his feet kicked up and snapped his fingers to get Makino's attention.

"Well, what are you waiting for. We aren't so cruel that we won't pay. Just bring us some sake ASAP." She did as he asked, and the bandits started drinking and getting rambunctious. It didn't take long for them to start insulting and making fun of Shanks and his crew, calling them weak and saying that they were a bunch of cowards. Luffy heard all of this and was getting angrier by the second. 'These bastards. They wouldn't be so brave if Old Man Ben was in here. I know he could easily deal with them,' Luffy thought while continuing to eat while trying to ignore them. But it was getting hard to keep his anger bottled with every insult to Shanks. They were starting to get even more raucous and started spilling half their drinks on the floor instead of drinking them. "Oi, more sake over here." Higuma demanded while eyeing Makino up and down all the while. "Hey, you should hang with us pretty lady, we'll keep you company," he said while he and his fellow bandits were leering at her.

"I'm sorry, but I have other customers to attend to," she slightly bowed her head and tried to walk back to the kitchen when Higuma grabbed her ass and pulled her into his lap. "Come on, we can show you a much better time than those pirates," He finished saying while trying to force his tongue into Makino's mouth while his crew was just jeering and starting to grab at her clothes. That's when Luffy stood up abruptly knocking his stool garnering their attention.

"Get your hands off Makino you bastards!" he shouted.

"Oh, and what are you going to do about you little punk?" Higuma teased while his fellow bandits laughed alongside him.

"I'll kick your asses," he then jumped on top of the bar to make him seem taller. Higuma then threw Makino to the ground and drew his sword. "Oh really, maybe I should cut off an arm so you can learn to respect your elders." 'This kid is probably gonna piss his pants now. I'm a bandit with an 8 million Beli bounty after all.' But what surprised him was the kid was now smiling.

"Yoshi, I get to try out something that Ben taught me!" Luffy then held up his right arm while holding on to his shoulder with his left and started winding it up.

'Haha, this little brat thinks this a game' Higuma thought walking towards Luffy prepared to dismember but he stopped in his tracks when he looked at the kid's arm. There was a funnel a wind forming around it that was spinning rapidly and increasing in size with each windup. 'What the hell?!' he thought as the small breeze inside the bar picked up and the wind was kicking up chairs and tables and making it hard to stay on the ground like it was trying to blow them away. "Tch, I'm gonna kill you, you little brat!" Higuma said, launching forward with his sword. Luffy saw him coming and cocked his right fist back making the wind concentrate around his arm even more and spin faster. He brought his speeding forward and it collided with Higuma's sword and shattered it to pieces. The funnel on his arm burst forward with his punch and blasted the bandit and his troupe clear through the door and wall of the bar.

This drew the attention of the villagers who were outside trying to see what happened to their only bar.

Luffy stepped out of the bar with dust flying everywhere, and then he swiped his hand in the air and blew it all away. "Shishishi, how do you like my Tatsumaki Ken (Tornado Fist), you bastards?" he said punching his fist into his palm. When he looked over the bandits, he saw they were all still alive with various bruises and scars covering their bodies. Some were even getting back up on shaky legs, but the person who suffered the worst was Higuma who was kneeling and trying to catch his breath. He was clutching onto his right shoulder trying to stop the bleeding from the arm that was no longer there. 'What the hell?! How did he take off my arm, he's just a kid, and he's smiling from ear to ear. He's a devil!' He then started panicking, "Wait wait wait, I'm sorry for insulting those pirates just let me and my guys leave. Please!"

"As pissed as I am about what you said about Shanks, I'm even more angry for what you did to Makino. Name-calling is one thing, but hurting my friends is something I won't forgive!" Luffy yelled staring right at Higuma and drawing forth his will unintentionally.

"Well said Luffy." He turned to the one who spoke and saw Shanks and his crew with Makino and Mayor Woop Slap. "I was wondering why no one was at the port to greet us, but now I see why." Shanks would have continued, but he a pistol now pointed at his temple.

"Shut up you damn pirate. We'll kill every one of you." One of Higuma's bandits had gotten back on his feet and thought they still had a chance.

"Put your life on the line." Shanks said.

"Huh, what are you talking about?"

He pointed at the pistol that was aimed at his head. "I mean guns aren't for threats. They're for action." Before he could say anything, he was shot in the back of the head by Lucky Roo just as he took a bite from his never-ending drums of meat. The townspeople as well as the rest of the bandits were shocked to say the least. One shouted he killed him while another was raving how they were fighting dirty.

"Unfair? Dirty?" said Yasopp Shank's Gunner.

Ben stepped forward next to Luffy. "Don't be stupid. You're not fighting against holy men or saints.

"The ones before you are pirates." Shanks said with his crew behind him all smiles.

"Bullshit, we don't have any business with you!" shouted one of the bandits. Shanks glared at them. "Listen up bandits. Like the kid just said I can have food or drinks spilled on me or even be spit at and laugh about it. He took a brief pause and leaked just a small amount of his conqueror's spirit. "However, if for any reason you hurt a friend of mine …I won't forgive you!"

'Shanks, so that's why. I knew Shanks, you're so cool!' Luffy thought, smiling while looking back at him. Higuma was not deterred though. "Really, you won't forgive me?" He said chuckling and attempting to stand. "Freaking pirates! Men! Kill them all!"

The rest of the bandits, after being riled up by their leader's bravado rushed forward with swords drawn and yelling. Luffy took a fighting stance, but Ben put a hand on his making him look up at him, "I'm enough to take care of them." Ben said walking forward to meet their charge while wielding his rifle like a bludgeon. He made short work of them all in a matter of seconds busting ribs, legs, and other various ligaments. He pointed his rifle at Higuma who was the last one standing, "You're dreaming bandit. If you want to fight us, you had better bring no less than a war ship." Luffy watched in amazement and had one thought. 'Strong'.

Higuma started backing up and raising his remaining arm panicking, "Wa…wait a minute! This is all this brat's fault."

Shanks smiled, "Isn't there a reward on your head. He saw Higuma finally let fear sink in then saw him reach in his pocket. 'What is he-. His train thought was cut off when the bandit threw a smoke bomb down and with his observation, he felt him move towards Luffy, "Luffy, watch out!"

The smoke would have been a problem, but the first thing Ben wanted Luffy to practice was to use his power to feel the shifts and changes in the wind. Luffy felt the wind shift hard in his direction and swiped his hands downward and created a powerful gust that blew away all the smoke and blasted Higuma down the hill they had come up to enter the village.

"Hehehe, you can't sneak up on me." Luffy said proudly. Shanks then walked up to and placed a hand on his shoulder, "You alright Luffy?" He shook his head yes. And then pointed, "What do we do about him?" he asked pointing at Higuma. Said bandit was lying on his back unconscious and even more beat up.

Shanks stroked his goatee, "Hmm, well he does have bounty and you beat him yourself so why don't you take the money." Luffy eyes bugged out his head.

"EHHH, 8 million beli?! I can have all the meat I want now!" Luffy said jumping up and down. Shanks chuckled and looked at him wistfully. He knew it was time to leave, but he had something to take care of first. Walking up to the mayor he handed him a long wooden box with silvery metal engravings all over it, "I want you to give this to Luffy when he decides to leave on his journey, and not a minute before. Woop Slap didn't know what it was, nor did he care. Shanks may be a pirate, but he and his crew protected the villagers that he was responsible for. He shook his in the affirmative and took the box to his own home where no would find it.

Later in the day Shanks and his crew were gathering the last of their cargo and goods as they were finally preparing to leave Dawn Island and head back to the Grand Line.

"You're leaving then?" Luffy asked sadly.

"Yeah. It was a long stay, but now we part ways. Bet you'll miss me, huh?" Shanks teased.

"Well yeah, but I won't ask you to take me anymore. I've decided to become a pirate on my own now!" Shanks sticks his tongue out at Luffy.

"I wasn't gonna take you anyway! You'll never be a pirate!" he said, getting his last joke in with his little anchor.

Luffy then got agitated, "I will too! Someday, I'm gonna gather a crew every good as yours, and I'm gonna find the greatest treasure in the world, and I'm gonna be the King of the Pirates! I'll show you! His outburst had Shank's entire crew grinning and hoping he gets to their level one day and go out to sea.

"You're gonna surpass us, huh? In that case," Shanks took off his straw hat and placed it onto Luffy's head, "I'll leave this hat to you. It's very dear to me. Take good care of it!" Luffy could say nothing because he started crying, so he just shook his head yes while biting his lower lip.

Shanks and his crew then set off from Dawn Island with the residents of Fusha Village and Luffy waving goodbye. 'Come bring it back to me one day. Once you become a great pirate. That's our promise, Luffy!' he thought while looking at his crying face.