Hey Guys! Crescent Rider here and I am back with another chapter! Before you all begin, there is something I need to tell you all first.
I just realized that the way Marie and her clones operate is almost similar to that of Vegapunk and his Satellites. However, there is a difference between the two and I'll let you guys guess that one out yourselves.
That is all I have to say and enjoy the chapter!
Flashback...
Leaning against a tree, Marie watched three boys declaring their goals and ambitions to the open sea and smiling with every word they'd voiced.
As soon as these boys turned to her, they asked one particular question, "What about you, Marie? What do you want to do when you're out at sea?"
"Me? Well..." Marie pondered,
Present
Marie was feeling a bit drowsy, having been stuffed into a barrel with her brother. The reason for this idea is due to their boat getting caught in a whirlpool and the barrel was Luffy's only idea for survival.
As cramped as it was, Marie had approved of Luffy's ingenious idea and tolerated the space and his snoring if it meant their impending survival. As for the position they're in, Marie was in the middle and her back was pressed against his chest.
It may seem awkward for her, but she'd tolerated it as well.
Not paying attention to her brother's snoring, she soon heard a splash nearby and assumed that someone was trying to hoist the barrel out of the sea. Normally, she'd check it out but she couldn't risk opening the barrel earlier or the two of them would fall into the sea.
A couple of minutes later, the barrel was being hoisted up and she could hear the voices of sailors. But what comes next is the sound of cannon fire and explosions and the barrel they were in started rolling its way to the lower decks of the ship.
Marie would groan whenever the barrel bounced in whatever direction it rolled to while Luffy was still fast asleep. It also caused her to bump her head against the wood and Luffy's chest and chin.
Once the barrel stops rolling, she hisses from the pain and looks up to see Luffy, "To think he'd be asleep through all that... Well, whatever. What matters now is getting out of this barrel,"
From her shoulders, a pair of arms emerge and they plan on pushing the lid off. But they pulled back when the barrel started rolling again, albeit at a much slower pace than before.
Maria then heard chatter and it sounded like men talking to a child. It lasts for a few minutes then the barrel is now positioned upright and it is Marie's cue to wake her brother, "Luffy, wake up,"
Luffy was still snoring even as Marie shook him by the sides of his way. She tried shaking his arms at the same time she was shaking his waist but to no avail. He was a deep sleeper and Marie grew overly concerned.
'Allow me...' Fury insisted,
"Fury, what are you-" Before Marie could say, Fury's arm appeared from the base of her back and landed an uppercut underneath Luffy's law,
This sent her rubbery brother bursting through the barrel and into the ceiling. Marie had her eyes wide open as she remained inside the barrel for a brief period, "D-Did you have to do that?"
'He wasn't waking up, so I thought I'd take the Geezer's advice and see if it'll work,' Fury explained,
"As much as I love Grandpa and all, could you have picked a better option?" Marie meeked,
'Too late for that,' Fury stated, and Marie sighed in response,
Marie soon peeks out of the barrel and spots two men in the room. She'd stare at them, then greeted them with a humble smile, "Hello there, How are you all doing today?"
"Oh, we're fine. Thanking you for- HEY!" The two men answered before yelling at her when the revelation dawned on them,
Marie paid no mind to them, and looked down to see an unconscious man on the floor, "Is he okay?"
"You were the one who knocked him out!" The two men yelled,
"Really? Then I'm sorry to cause you trouble," Marie blankly apologized,
Though that man was about to regain consciousness without their friends' notice, he was knocked out again when Luffy pulled himself out of the ceiling and crashed onto the man's large belly, "Oi, Marie! What the heck was that for!"
"I didn't do it, it was Fury who did it," Marie explained, "You wouldn't wake up when I tried, so she thought it'd be best if she did it than I would,"
"Oh, okay," Luffy understood since he knows her all too well,
Moments later, Luffy finds himself pointed by a saber from one of the men and the same applies to Marie as they interrogate them, "Hold up! Are you two messing with us when you know good and well we're vicious pirates!"
"Hey, I'm starving. You got any food?" Luffy asked directly to a pink-haired kid, while Marie glanced at the second man holding a blade near her face,
"I'm talking to you!" The first pirate yelled directly to Luffy
"Grrr... You damn kids!" The second pirate yelled as he and his friend tried to strike them down,
However, Luffy and Marie were calm and proceeded to break their sabers with a single blow of their fists and send the broken tips onto the ceiling.
The two pirates were now whimpering before two after their blades were broken, but neither Luffy nor Marie didn't hold it against them as the former asked, "What is wrong with you two?"
"Who are you, people!" The second pirate exclaimed,
"Us?" Luffy inclined, "I'm Monkey D. Luffy! Hi!"
"And I'm Monkey D. Marie," Marie followed as she and her brother gave their respective smiles,
Before long, these two pirates were screaming as they grabbed their unconscious friend and hightail out of the room.
Luffy, Marie, and the Pink-haired kid just stared at the men leaving. Then the latter timidly turns to the siblings, "So... What just happened,"
"You got me," Luffy nonchalantly remarked,
Not a minute later, the pink-haired kid gets agitated by the situation, "Quick! You got to run! When those guys come back with their buddies, they'll kill you both on the spot!"
"I don't care about that, I'm hungry," Luffy dismissed,
"I think this some sort of storage area if we look around a bit longer. We might find some food we can eat," Marie said,
"Then let's start looking!" Luffy declared,
The Pink-Haired Boy tries elaborating on the situation, but Luffy and Marie just ignore him and make their way to the door. This prompted the pink-haired boy to grasp both Luffy and Marie's respective arms and try to hold them back.
But instead of holding them back, he was dragged along as the two possessed strength that he lacked. He even shrieked in pain when his head was trapped in between some doors by Luffy.
A Few Moments Later...
Luffy becomes ecstatic when they finally reach the ship's food storage and skims around the crates. For Marie, she just approached the first crate she saw and proceeded to open it.
"There's some apples here, Luffy," Marie said, and tossed a few to him,
"Oh, boy! Thanks, Marie!" Luffy thanked and started stuffing his mouth with these apples,
Marie just grabbed two apples, sat on a platform with crossed legs, and chewed down the first apple while the pink-haired boy approached the two, "M-My name is Koby. You're Luffy-san and Maria-san, right?"
"Correct, Koby-san," Marie replied, properly chewing on an apple and offering the other to him, "You want some too?"
"Eh? Um, sure. Thanks, I guess," Koby replied as he took the apple from Marie's hand, "Anyhow, what you two did back there was great, how did you two do that?"
"These apples are great!" Luffy said and kept eating, "Is this a pirate ship?"
"No, it's a passenger ship that pirates are raiding," Koby revealed, "Pirates that are under the command of Lady Alvida,"
'Lady Alvida? Who might that be?' Marie inquired,
"Well, that doesn't matter," Luffy said as he chowed down on the apples, "Do you know if there are any boats onboard?"
"I think there are a few," Koby presumed,
"That's good to know, considering that our ship was sucked into the whirlpool not too long ago," Marie revealed,
"The one outside, No way! No one could have survived that," Koby said,
"Then you might as well consider us the first people to have survived," Marie declared, "Although, I didn't appreciate being cramped inside a barrel though,"
"Shishishishi! Sorry about that, still that was a big surprise!" Luffy expressed with glee,
Marie smiled as she took one last bite of the apple, threw away the core, and grabbed a new one, "That reminds me, Koby. Are you also part of the crew above or one of the passengers?"
Koby briefly stiffened, then looked despondent and Marie took notice, "Eh... well... It was on a fateful day, long ago. That day, I stepped out onto a small fishing boat to catch my dinner. Turned out that particular boat was heading for a pirate ship, that was two years ago. And in exchange for letting me live, I'm forced to live the life of a cabin boy,"
"You're pretty stupid, you know that," Luffy bluntly remarked,
"Luffy," Marie calmly retorted,
"Geez, thanks for your honesty," Koby sarcastically thanked,
"If you hate it, then leave," Luffy suggested, to which Koby responded with various shakes of his head, "Are you kidding?! I can't do that, no way! un-unh! Not a chance! Just the thought of Alvida-sama finding me scares me so bad I want to throw up!"
"You're a moron and a coward, I hate people like you!" Luffy blissfully remarked while laughing,
As Koby shed tears and averted himself from Luffy, Marie went to the latter's side and bonked him on the head, "That wasn't nice of you to say, Luffy,"
"S-Sorry," Luffy apologized,
"Anyhow, Luffy is somewhat right. If you can't muster the courage to leave, you'll spend the rest of your days on a pirate ship or worse," Marie clarified, "Better to have a bit of backbone than none at all,"
Koby's mouth was slightly open, and then he lowered his head with a bitter smile, "Yeah, you're right. If I had the courage, I could drift alone in a barrel and be rid of these pirates. Have my dreams, and someday I like to live on all of them,"
Luffy and Marie stare at him, and then the big question comes into Koby's mind, "So, what about you, Luffy-san? What was it that got you to set sails on the seas,"
Without a second thought, Luffy revealed his goal with a grin, "Well, I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!"
Koby was flabbergasted by Luffy's goal and Marie giggled at his reaction. He tries to reaffirm Luffy's goal and affiliation and the latter is set on becoming the King of the Pirates and confirms his identity as a pirate.
"Your crew?" Koby inquired,
"I've got my Big Sister for now, but I'm looking for more," Luffy said,
Once it all came down to him, Koby then turned to Marie, "W-What about you, Marie-san. W-W-What do you want that made you set sail with him,"
Marie pondered about it, then she playfully placed a finger on her lips and winked at him, "It's a secret! But if I have to be a pirate to achieve it, then a pirate I shall be,"
Koby was silent by their response even though Marie didn't give him a clear answer. Luffy waved his hand over his face to see if he was responsive while Marie just kept staring before Koby quickly stood up and began, "King of the Pirates is the title given to the one who obtains everything this world has to offer! You're talking about seeking the great treasure of wealth, fame, and power!"
Luffy and Marie just nod along to his words, then Koby exclaims the goal of gaining that title, "The treasure you seek is the One Piece"
"Yeah!" Luffy eagerly expressed,
"Yeah, that's it? Pirates from all over the world are looking for that treasure you know!" Koby reminded,
"Yeah, so?" Luffy inquired,
What followed is Koby frantically expressing that such a feat is impossible with someone like Luffy in this 'Great Pirate Era' because there are just too many pirates that are far worse than them.
This made Luffy smack Koby on the head and the latter clutched the top of his head as he fell to his knees, "Ow... Why'd you hit me?"
"Because I felt like it," Luffy replied, normally Marie would reprimand her brother's act. But a part of her felt that such a thing was appropriate since Koby's frantic reaction was quite annoying for Luffy,
"Hm... Oh, well. I'm used to that stuff. My shipmates smack me around a lot, all the time in fact," Koby noted,
"It's not about if I can't. I'm doing this because I want to," Luffy said, and Koby looked up to him, "I decided long ago that I'm going to be King of the Pirates. If I have to die fighting for it, then I die,"
Marie just smiles while Koby just stares at him, after Luffy puts his straw hat back and proceeds to walk towards the door, "Alright, now that my belly's full! I'm going to get us a brand-new boat! Or they're just going to give me one if I ask nice enough,"
"I doubt asking will help," Marie said as she stood up and walked towards the door, "But if it means we're getting a new boat, then I'm all in for it,"
"I guess I never thought about it," Koby said, "If I put my mind to it if I'm prepared to die for it. Could I do something like that?"
"Like what?" Luffy inquired, while Marie turned to him,
"Do you think, Do you think I could join the Marines?" Koby asked,
"Marines?" Luffy repeated,
"Yes! Catching bad guys is my dream! It's been my dream since I was a child! Do you think I can do it?" Koby determinedly asked,
"Why ask us that?" Marie questioned, "That answer depends on whether you want to or not. You can't let anyone tell you otherwise,"
"Then I'm going to do it! I'm going to get stuck here as a cabin boy for the rest of my life!" Koby declared and the two just smiled as he went on, "I'll break out, turn right around, and catch Alvida myself!"
Without warning, the ceiling on top of them soon collapsed and a voice was soon heard by the three, "Who is that you plan on catching, Koby? And you actually think these twigs are going to help you? Well, answer me!"
Koby's newfound confidence practically drains itself out of his body and shakes before Alvida, who glares down on the poor boy.
As Luffy and Marie lean forward, the wall behind them is struck by blades, and they narrowly miss the sides of their heads. Yet, they remained unfazed by the danger they were present in.
Alvida may eye on Koby for a brief moment, then she raises her head to the siblings, "Hm, my guess is that you're not Zoro the Pirate Hunter,"
"Zoro?" Luffy mouthed in confusion,
"He's a famous bounty hunter of the East Blue," Marie explained, "Roronoa Zoro, the Pirate Hunter,"
"Oh, so he's gotta be strong then," Luffy assumed,
'I know that look, he's going to find and recruit Zoro,' Marie guessed but wasn't against the idea as it's the captain's decision and not hers,
"Koby!" As Alvida called out, Koby shrieked in response, "Who's the most beautiful of all on these seas,"
Koby was stuttering before Alvida's presence, and then Luffy had to set off a bomb for all to hear, "Hey, Koby. Whose the fat lady?"
As fast as he said it, Marie stifled and covered her mouth to keep herself from laughing while Alvida, Koby, and the other pirates had their jaws dropped at the obvious insult of Luffy's question.
If there was one thing they did know, it was to not insult her in her very presence or they'll get the taste of Alvida's wrath and iron mace.
But what added fuel to that pyre was Ecstatic's face manifesting from Marie's back and starting laughing in her place, 'Crap!'
Several tick marks appeared on Alvida's face due to Luffy's insult and Marie's laughter. Then she flies off into a rage and raises her mace above her head, "You runts!"
Luffy jumps away while Marie jumps through the hole in the ceiling when Alvida attempts to swipe her club at her.
Now standing on the deck, Marie was faced with some of Alvida's pirate crew and they were all ready for action. Not a moment later, Luffy hops in with Koby in tow and yells out, "Hey, Sis! Kick their asses but save some for me!"
Marie smiles, gazes at the pirates, then smacks her fist against the open palm of her hand, "Sure thing, Captain!"
The first pirate tries to swing his sword at her, but she deflects this by striking the side of the blade, pushing it down to the floor, and smacking the back of her left hand against the pirate's face. The second pirate was easily punched after the first was knocked down.
The third and fourth tried to jump at her with sabers above their heads, but Marie would grab the saber of the first pirate and block those blades with ease. What came after was two arms emerging from her shoulders, fists clenched, and then blows were struck to the pirates' faces.
A pirate tried his luck by attacking her from behind, but Fury emerged on her own, parried the blade away, and struck him when he least expected.
"Whoa, what even is she!" A pirate exclaimed,
"Is she some kind of freak, where do all parts and bodies come from!" Another pirate exclaimed,
"If you want to know, I can show you," Marie said unprovoked, and stretched her arms to the sides, "Jiga Fomu!"
Two pairs of arms soon emerged from the sides of her chest, and assumed a fighting stance, "Supaida Hensei!"
The pirates whimpered in fear at the sight of Marie possessing six arms instead of two, what followed was her charging ahead with fists pulled back, then came a barrage of strong punches to the several pirates at once.
For the finishing blow, she'd pulled all six arms back and yelled as she struck the pirates overboard, "Go flying!"
The pirates were screaming down to the water and numerous splashes were heard. The extra arms then submerge back into her body and she turns to see how Luffy is holding up.
As she expected, Luffy was purposefully goofing around as the other pirates chased him. In response to this, Marie just laughed at her brother's antic before seeing him grasp onto the ship's mast and stretch himself while the pirates looked at his arm and back in confusion.
"Gotcha!" Luffy said, "Gomu-Gomu no!"
The pirates then whimpered upon realization and tried to make a run for it. But it was already too late for them as Luffy launched himself towards them, "Roketto!"
With all of Alvida's pirates down and out, Marie rejoins her brother's side and shares a smile with him, "Guess all that training paid off, huh, Luffy!"
"Yeah! Also, those arms of yours are cool too!" Luffy remarked,
"L-Luffy-san, M-Maria-san... What are you," Koby bafflingly asked,
"Oh? I'm a rubber man!" Luffy said as he stretched one of his rubber-like cheeks,
"And I'm a girl of many forms," Marie added while an arm emerged from her shoulder and waved,
"So you're made of rubber, and-" Koby mouthed, then he noticed Alvida's figure towering over him and scampering behind Luffy and Marie,
"So, you two have eaten one of the Devil Fruits," Alvida presumed,
"Yeah! The Gomu-Gomu no Mi" Luffy revealed,
"And I ate the Jiga-Jiga no Mi," Marie followed,
"Ah-ha, I'd heard the rumors they existed. But I've never seen evidence of them before today," Alvida commented, "You two are more skilled than the average deck swabber, are you bounty hunters?"
"We're pirates!" Luffy affirms,
"Pirates, ha! All by yourselves on these waters?" Alvida said,
"Today it's just us, but I'll find my crew tomorrow or next week or something," Luffy said, "We need, I don't know, ten guys. Yeah, ten,"
"Ha! Tell me, if we're both pirates and we're not under the same flag. Then that would make us enemies, am I right," Alvida worded,
"L-Luffy-san, Marie-san... Let's get out of here!" Koby frighteningly told,
"But why?" Luff asked,
"You saw how powerful her club is, and all the villainous chiefs in all these waters, she's easily the most-" Koby suddenly paused when he stared the fearless eyes with these two,
Their words soon echoed through his mind and he soon regained the same amount of confidence as he did in the storage room...
"Go on, tell me," Alvida threatened,
And Koby indulged her with the harshest truth he could say, "You're the most ugliest thing on the sea!"
Alvida's eyes darken and fuming upon hearing Koby's insult while Luffy lets out a laugh and Marie giggles against her mouth. Though Ecstatic would do the rest of the laughing as she appeared from Marie's back.
"Whaddya say?!" Alvida angrily questioned,
"I'm leaving and I'm going to join the Marines! Then I'm going to spend the rest of my life beating up dirty pirates like you!"
"Do you have any clue what you are saying to me right now?" Alvida angrily questioned,
"Of course I do and I'm going to do what I want and no one's gonna stop me!" Koby yelled, "And when I join the Marines, I'm gonna join them! I'm going to catch your lousy ass first!"
"YOU'RE DEAD KID! DIE!" Alvida screamed as she raised her club to smash Koby down,
Of course, he'd screamed but he wasn't running as he said he would. For he had no regrets for what he said and stayed true to his dream.
But now was not his time to die as Luffy came in between him and Alvida, "Well said!"
As Alvida's club hits Luffy's head, it does nothing as blunt weapons are useless against a man made of rubber. Something Luffy personally reminded Alvida before stretching his arm, then punching Alvida straight into her stomach and sending her flying.
Marie playfully placed her hand above her eyebrows and watched Alvida off the distance.
Once she was gone, Luffy pulled his arm back and turned to the pirates aboard Alvida's ship, "Hey, you!"
"YES?!" The pirate frightening inquired,
"Go find a boat and give it to Koby. He's leaving your ship to join the Marines," Luffy ordered, "And you're not going to stop him,"
"Yeah, sure!" The pirates agreed while Koby was baffled and then grateful to Luffy,
Not long after, cannon fire rained down around them, and everyone momentarily lost their balance before looking over the distance to see three Marine Ships.
"It's the Marines!" Koby recognized,
"Oooh, Perfect timing! Head on over there and tell 'em you want to join," Luffy encouraged, "But we're pirates, so we're out of here. Come on, Marie!"
"No wait! You can't be serious! I approach them like this, they'll just capture me like a pirate!" Koby exclaimed,
Marie was well aware of that fact, therefore she wrapped her arm around Koby's waist and carried him like luggage, "Then let's get you to a Marine Base instead!"
"Hey, wait!" Koby pleaded, but Marie jumped after Luffy, and Koby was screaming from the height they were falling,
Now onboard a new and better boat, they crash into the water and hold onto the railing to keep themselves from going overboard. There was also a scream of another girl and the encounter was brief due to the cannon fire, but Marie kept this encounter in mind as they escaped the area.
Minutes Later...
"We actually managed to get away," Koby commented,
"That's because the Marines are after Alvida. No reason for them to come after a small boat," Marie noted,
"Ha... What fun!" Luffy said,
"So, Luffy. If you're searching for the elusive One Piece, then you have to be headed for the Grand Line, right?" Koby assumed, and Luffy hummed in response, "You know the people I've talked to called that place the Pirate Graveyard,"
"Right, and that's why I need an extra strong crew," Luffy said, "You guys mentioned some pirate hunter? So what's he like Koby?"
"You mean Zoro? Last I heard, he's being held prisoner at some Marine Base," Koby said,
"Aw well, weakling, huh?" Luffy mused,
"No, you're so wrong! He's as violent as a demon and three times as horrifying!" Koby exclaimed, then it dawned on him to a question, "Why are you asking about him anyway?"
"I figured if he's strong enough, I'd ask him to join my crew!" Luffy revealed with a grin, and Koby was flabbergasted by this,
What comes after is Koby openly objecting to Luffy having Zoro as his crewmate. As it goes on, Koby soon gets hit on the head by Luffy as he 'felt like it' and Marie just looks towards the horizon, 'Roronoa Zoro... I wonder what he's like when we meet him...'
As tempted as they are, both Luffy and Marie have high expectations of the notorious 'Pirate Hunter'.
That is it for this chapter, but before you all go. I'd like to let you all know that I'll be using both Sub and Dub on the story. The subs will be used on attacks, Devil Fruits, laugh styles, etc. and Dub for most of the dialogues.
I don't care if there are haters here or not, I'll keep going with the story.
And lastly, I'll be making a list of Marie's attacks and clones just to keep you all updated on what's new and everything. They'll only appear at the end of very chapter.
That is all I have to say and I'll see you all in the next chapter!
Marie's Jiga Fomu (Ego Forms):
Supaida Hensei (Spider Formation) - New
Marie's Jiga Kuron (Ego Clones):
Ecstatic Marie
Purist Marie
Fury Marie