"What a day! It's gorgeous," Luffy said as he stretched out his limbs to embrace the warmth. Nearby Colby had taken his fishing rod that was on the boat and started to fish. Raven and Lea nodded as they were relaxing. Raven's fingers were playing with the water absentmindedly.
"As long as we stay on route we should reach the marine base in no time at all," Colby said happily.
"Wow Colby, you're great out here, we are actually heading in the right direction," Luffy said with a grin. Raven just shook her head at her brother.
"Of course, it's nothing. I'm just using the skills all sailors should have," He said before adjusting his glasses and watched Luffy. Luffy just laughed as he looked at the sea ahead of him. "There's nothing to laugh at because, at the marine base, they are holding the pirate hunter Roronoa Zoro," Colby said before going on and on about the monstrosities that the captor had done.
"Sounds interesting to me," Lea said with a shrug.
Colby was going to say something but Raven spoke up before him, "Who knows, he might be a good guy with a bad attitude," She said with a shrug.
"That's impossible, he's a prisoner of the marines. He has to be a bad guy," Colby tries to argue.
"Never judge a book by its cover," Lea said.
"Use Luffy for example, he may look weak but he's not," Raven explained.
Colby barely nodded before he spotted the island. The group then guided the boat to the docks. Soon they all got out and stretched their limbs.
Luffy puts his arms down as he grinned and looked around, "We're here."
"We can see that Luffy," Lea said with a chuckle. The people who lived by the docks had raised a brow in his direction. He quietly nodded before leading the group into the marketplace. Colby then continued to try and persuade the group that Zorro was not someone he wanted to bring onto their crew.
"I haven't made up my mind yet. Let's see if he's a nice guy first," Luffy said as he continued to walk and look at the merchants and their wares.
"He's in prison because he is obviously not!" Colby said as Luffy picked up a pear. He took a bite out of it before flipping a coin to the merchant lady who he took the pear from.
"Have you seen Roronoa Zoro here?" Luffy asked the lady. His question shook the lady to the core and she went and hide. Raven looked around to see that the townspeople also started to panic at the words.
Colby looked confused but whispered to the group, "Let's not mention Zoro around here."
"That's the strangest thing I've seen and we grew up with mountain bandits, "Lea said quietly as she watched the people around her, Raven nodded in agreement.
"Let's head to the base and check it out, you want to be a marine, " Luffy said to Colby and raised a brow, "Right?"
"Well, of course," Colby said before sighing, "I just don't think I'm ready yet."
"Don't underestimate yourself, Colby," Lea said as she placed a hand on his shoulder for encouragement. She let it sit there for a couple seconds before pulling it away.
Colby gave a soft smile and nodded to Lea before turning back to look at Luffy. "Yea, you're right. Captain Morgan is in charge here, so I can try to ask him," He said. At the mention of the name, the people around them reacted in a terrified state, just like how they did when Luffy said Zoro's name. Raven just arched her brow while Luffy started to burst out laughing.
"This town is such a weird place," Luffy said through his laughter.
"I have to agree with him. It is usually a bad thing when people react badly to marines like this, "Lea said as she looked at all the frightened faces.
"I don't understand it. Why are they acting that way?" Colby asked
"Well the world isn't all black and white," Lea said to him.
"I don't know, I have a bad feeling about this," Colby said in a small stutter as he shook his head. The group then left the marketplace in search for the marine base. It didn't take them long.
"Well, here we are," Luffy said as the four stopped at a massive iron door that had the symbol of the marines branded on it.
Colby then started to tear up as he started to rub his eyes. "I can't believe I'm here. This is where we part ways. We didn't have long together but it was fun while it lasted. Thank you Luffy, Lea,-" He began to say when he looked up to see that the three had walked away and to the side, as they were looking for Zoro. The small group of three were up the stone wall. They were looking over the top of it when Colby tried to get them down from below. He soon stopped in defeat before joining them up there. He looked over to where they were looking and gasped.
"Colby, look!" Luffy said as he pointed to the green-haired guy who was tied to a poll in a crucified way. Colby just stared with wide eyes.
"That is REALLY cruel," Lea mutters under her breath as she looked at Zoro with slightly saddened eyes.
"If we just untie those ropes then he could just walk away," Luffy said simply.
"You're stating the obvious Luffy," Lea said with a shake of her head.
"I can't see him like this, we should do something," Raven said as she watched the guy.
Colby then started to yell at the three and tried to explain to them that it would be a bad idea. Raven and Lea just rolled their eyes at him. Colby didn't stop talking until the small group heard another voice.
"Hey you four over there," Said the voice. The group turned to look at Zoro. "You're an eyesore. Get Lost," He said simply. When Colby got picked on by Zoro, he started to freak out and panic. He was the only one panicking, for the other three were just watching him calmly. Before anyone could say anything else, the group's attention was drawn to the side as a wooden ladder appeared along with a small girl with brunette pigtails. She looked to the left and than then to the group. She placed a finger over her lips and shushed them before climbing over the edge and into the courtyard below. Colby just stared with wide eyes.
"Ain't she cute," Lea said with a smile. Raven just nodded as her eyes sparkled happily. Both she and Lea adored kids. Colby just watched and panicked as he saw her run over to Zoro, his hands in his mouth as he started to bite his nails. They saw the small girl take out a small package from her bag and showed it to Zoro. Raven couldn't help but smile seeing her so happy to give him something.
"What do you want?" Zoro asked the girl.
"I thought you may be getting hungry now, so I made you a couple rice balls," She said happily as she unwrapped them to show the homemade rice balls.
"You have a death wish kid? Scram," Zoro said sternly.
The small girl didn't budge. "You haven't eaten anything since you were tied up. So here. I never made them before but I tried my best so I think their fine," She said with some confidence. She just looked up at the guy sweetly.
Zoro just looked at her in surprise. He couldn't help the cuteness. The two girls on the wall were trying not to squeal while Luffy just smiled. Colby was confused as to why the girl was doing this to someone like Zoro.
Zoro then snapped, "Listen, kid, I'm not hungry. Now stop irritating me and get out of here!"
"But…"The girl said a bit disheartened.
"Do not make me kick your ass little girl,"Zoro said sternly.
Nearby, the gate opened to the courtyard as three men entered. "Well, well, look at what we have here. Nobody likes a bully," Said the one with his high pitched voice. "Roronoa Zoro, you seem to be handling this well," Said the really short, blonde bobbed man.
From the wall, Luffy whispered to his crew and friend, "Hey look it's another weird guy."
"With an annoying voice at that," Lea responded with a nod.
"It's a little boy with a big ego," Raven said with a roll of her eyes.
"Oh, great. He must be with the marines," Colby said. Lea just facepalmed.
"Lookie here, some tasty rice balls," Said the blonde man as he snatche3d one from the little girl's hand. It made her flinch a bit.
She regained herself not a second sooner before she started to yell at him, "Hey! That's not for you!" The little girl said to him as Zoro glared at the boy.
The blonde's eyes went wide as he spat out the food and muttered, "It's too sweet! They're packed with sugar!" He said before balling a fist. "You're supposed to use salt!" He screamed at the little girl.
"But I...I thought they'd taste better sweet!" The little girl whimpered before the man smacked the other rice ball out of her hand and started to stomp on it into the dirt. "Stop! I tried so hard to make them!" The little girl cried as tears began to form in the corner of her eyes.
Lea frowns from on top of the wall, "That's just awful," She said as she started to growl in anger.
"Too bad, I bet you hadn't read the notice that was posted. Those who assist criminals in any way would be executed signed Marine Captain Morgan," The man said as he pointed his finger to the notice. A smirk on his lips. The little girl just shrunk in fear. The guy just laughed,"It even seems that even small brats fear my daddy."
The blonde man then turned to the marine to his left and ordered him around. "You there, toss this kid out right now." The soldier hesitated before he was grabbed by the collar by the man he was with. "Now if you won't follow my orders, I'll tell my father," He said in a dark yet whiny tone.
The soldier quickly nodded before he was set down. He then made his way to the girl. "Yes sir, 'he said with a sigh. The man then gently picked up the girl. "I'm' sorry miss, try curling into a ball," He said before throwing her over the wall.
As her body came close to the group, Lea jumped and caught the girl in her arms. As she fell back towards the ground, she flipped so that she would take the brunt of the fall. Luffy looked over in worry but calmed down when he saw that the two were fine. The little girl peeked out from behind her hands and said,"Thanks, miss."
Colby, Luffy, and Raven jumped down to come to the two's side. Raven wanted to make sure that the two were alright and not physically hurt. Colby then bent down to check on the small girl. After a few seconds, he said, "We should bring her back home. I bet her mother is worried sick. Raven nodded as she gently took the girl's hand in hers as she looked at Colby who nodded in agreement.
"I and Luffy are going to stay here, we'll meet you guys later," Lea said before Luffy nodded as he proceeded to jump over the wall. He was more curious about Zoro. Raven nodded before watching her sister climb on after him. Colby had watched too but he started to lead the two girls back towards the small town that they came through not too long ago.
By the time the two leaped over the wall, the Marines were gone. Zoro looked up as the two approached him. Luffy was the first one to break the silence. "So I hear that you are a bad guy," Luffy said simply.
Lea just shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose a bit as he said that. "Really nice intro Luffy," She muttered.
"You two still here?" Zoro sighed as he looked at the two of them.
"You're stuck out here for all to see and nothing" Luffy stated before asking him, "Are you that strong?"
"Mind your own business,"Zoro spat.
"If I were you, I would've starved in three days," Luffy said, ignoring Zoro for a second.
"Luffy, your metabolism works differently than most people, hence you need to eat more," Lea tried to explain to him.
"I got more spirit than you could ever have," Zoro explained with a smirk on his lips. "That's how I'm going to survive this ordeal. This I swear," he said.
Luffy burst out in laughter, "You're a weirdo," He said before he got slapped in the back of the head by his sister for his comment. She shook her head
"Wait," Zoro said before he glanced at the smooshed rice cake in the dirt. "Could you pick that up for me?" He asked before they had time to turn around and leave.
Luffy then bent down before trying to pick it up. "Can you eat this?" He asked as the rice cakes crumbled out of the cracks of his hand. "It's mostly a ball of dirt," he warned.
"Shut up and give it to me NOW!" Zoro screamed. Luffy then helped Zorro eat it before he coughed a bit.
"You should've listened to me," Luffy said as he folded his arms after the whole rice cake was eaten, dirt and all.
"That was good….Thanks for the food," He said quietly before Lea silently bent down and reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a canteen of water. She then gently lifted his chin up.
"Here, you need to drink something," Lea said to Zoro who just stared at her. After a few seconds, he opened his mouth as she put the edge of the canteen to his lips and he slowly began to drink. Water dribbled out of the corner of his lips as he drank.
When he was finished, Lea took the canteen and put it away. As she looked back, he gave her a gentle smirk. "Thanks."
"You're welcome," Lea said with a smirk.
An hour or two later, the group had convened outside the little girl's mother's restaurant. "Really?" The little girl asked happily as she clasped her hands together and her smile was bright and big on her face.
"He ate every last grain of rice there was," Luffy said in a matter-of-fact tone.
"That's great!" She said happily.
"I guess Zoro isn't as evil as everyone thinks he is," Colby commented as he questioned his views on the Marines.
The little girl was quick to defend Zoro as she pointed at Colby and said," He's not! He's good because he got himself punished for us," she said as she folded her arms.
"You're making no sense," Luffy said.
"Giver her a chance to explain," Lea scolded as she gave her brother another bop on the head.
"Sorry. It's that dumb Helmeppo's fault. He's the son of Captain Morgan," She said as she started to tell them what had happened to Zoro. It took her a few minutes to complete the story before she broke down crying.
Lea looked amazed as the tale was told. "OK, my respect for him has gone way up," She said with a smile.
Raven nodded at Lea before she gently pulled the little girl into a hug so she could calm down. She then clenched her fist as she said "Wait till I get my hands on Helmeppo, He'll regret trying to hurt her!" Her eyes were ablaze.
Lea pats the black haired girl's shoulder, "The guy's an idiot, he'll get what he deserves."
Raven sighed and nodded before muttering, "Yes, he's just lucky that I didn't bring good ol' Lucy out from the boat. She was referring to her favorite hammer.
"Where the heck did you keep it?" Lea asked with a raised brow.
"You mean HER! And that's my secret," Raven said with a smirk. Lea just shook her head as she gave her a weird look. The small girl in Raven's arms started to sob a bit.
"I just don't know what to do," She whimpered as Raven tried to calm her down again. Her smirk was replaced with a gentle worried look.
Sulking on a step behind her, Colby said, "I can see why you are upset."
The small girl was going to reply when they all heard the sound of breaking glass that came from inside. "What was that?" Lea asked quickly.
"I don't know, but I can guess who it may be and oh how I wished that I had brought Lucy," Raven muttered as she clenched her fist again. It didn't take long before the group barged into the restaurant to see Helmeppo with his feet on the table as he demanded free food. Standing behind him were two marines. He was threatening the mother that if she didn't obey his orders he would have his dad execute her and her child.
The woman had quickly gotten to work and gave him some food and a drink. Her face scrunched up in worry for her daughter. Raven was holding back Lea and Colby was holding back Luffy. They were on the edge of tackling him when they stopped to listen to what he had to say.
"I'm so bored," Helmeppo complained as he sipped at his wine. "I guess I could just execute Zoro," He said to the men behind him before he started to laugh at his idea.
"What did he say…." Lea said as she began to snarl. Helmeppo's words had broken a chord with not only Lea but Luffy as well. Luffy's eyes narrowed before he ran up and slammed his fist into the man's face. Helmeppo dropped his drink on the floor and it began to pool as he was slammed into the wall.
Raven just smirked as Helmeppo looked up I shock as he held his cheek. "Y..you just hit me!"
"Yeah, for a good reason," Lea said as she cracked her knuckles before winding her arm up and hitting him also.
"They're not the only ones to do so!" Raven snarled before punching him to the ground again as he tried to get up. The other marines now ran to his side.
"Y..you guys actually hit me!" Was all Helmeppo could say as he staggered to his feet with the help of his men.
"Welcome to the real world! You can't get everything you want," Lea muttered as she folded her arms.
" "I'M CAPTAIN MORGAN'S SON! JUST SO YOU KNOW!" He yelled at them as he clenched his own hands. Raven swore that steam was coming out of his ears.
"As if we care," Replied Luffy, Lea, and Raven. Colby just watched from the sidelines. He was with the young girl and her mother. His eyes wide.
"You'll care when he personally executes you three!" The blonde man screams.
"I would like to see him try," Lea said as she puts her hand on her hips.
"Why don't you just be a man and fight!" Luffy snarled.
"Because he's too girly, that's why," Lea said simply.
Luffy snarled and he clenched his fists tighter, "I made up my mind, Zoro is going to join my crew."
Helmeppo just glared as he snapped at his men and they left without another word. He made up his mind and he was going to get his father involved. When Helmeppo left the tension in the air dissipated.
After the scene settled down a bit, people went back to eating their meal. They started to talk about what was going to happen. Lea turned to Luffy and asked. "So are we going to help him or not?"
Luffy nodded and he made his way out the door without another word. Raven and Lea then followed on after him. Colby looked over to the frightened child and her mother. "Don't worry, we'll protect him and you guys," He said before darting after the group. The little girl nodded as she watched them disappear.
It wasn't long before the four of them were standing in front of Zoro again. He grunts as he started to wake up from his small slumber. "You guys again? Don't you have anything else to do?" He asked in a tired but blunt way.
"I'll untie you, only if you join my crew," Luffy answered.
Lea and Raven both facepalmed at him. "There he goes again, being blunt," Lea muttered to herself as Raven nodded in agreement.
"You're what?" Zoro asked with a deadpan look.
"My pirate crew, I'm looking for people to join me and my two sisters, "Luffy said as he stepped up to him.
"No way, I'll never stoop down to your level of being a criminal. Screw that business," He said before turning his head away.
Luffy placed his hands on his hips. "What's wrong with being a pirate?" He asked.
"They're despicable, that's why I don't want to join them."
"Hey!' Lea stated, "for your information, we are not despicable! Not all marines are good and not all pirates are bad."
Zoro just huffed before Luffy continued, "Come on, give me a break. Everybody thinks that you are a demon and a bounty hunter who is always out for blood."
"People can say whatever they want about me, but I've never done a single thing in my life that I regret," He said with a smirk. "I will make it through this challenge and after that, I'll accomplish what I want." His words made Lea smile a bit, he kept intriguing her.
Luffy then folded his arms, "I already decided that you would be joining us," He said confidently.
"WHAT! You can't do that!" He yelled.
"I heard that you're the best swordsman around,"
"I am, but that idiot's captain's son took mine away," He muttered.
"I guess I just have to get them for you," Luffy said with a smirk.
"What?"
"So if you want them, then you'll have to join my crew," Luffy said with a wide grin.
"NOW YOU'RE REALLY PISSING ME OFF!" Zoro snarled. Without saying another word, Luffy started to run in a direction. Zoro just shook his head before yelling at him. "Hey, idiot the base is in the other direction!"
Luffy screamed something before he launched himself through the gate. He did it by stretching his arms towards the gate and grasped it before he soared by the trio. Zoro's eyes went wide and his jaw dropped a bit from surprise. All the while, the two girls, and Colby just watched casually.
"What the hell is this kid…." Zoro stuttered. The girls then turned to talk to him and explained what Luffy had. Lea then explained to him that she also had a power like his.
"So you're a swordsman, I just so happened to be a blacksmith. My sister can tell you that I can make better blades than most in this sea," Raven said with a bright smile.
"It's true," Lea said as she went and pulled out a blade from one of her boots. She showed him one of her hidden blades. "She made me this set," She said to him.
"Not bad," Zorro said. "This is good craftsmanship,"
Colby had a moment of thought and he went behind Zorro and started to pick at the knots that held him to the wood.
"You're gonna get yourself killed for what you are doing right now," Zoro said to him as he watched him struggle with a knot.
"I can't stand seeing the marines behave like this," He said a bit sadly.
"Unfortunately Colby, there are only a few who don't get like this,' Lea said as she watched.
"Well, a true marine should be honorable," Colby responded to Lea with a hint of an edge to his voice.
"Look, kid, leave! I've got ten days left and then their-"
Colby interrupted him, "Well not quite, they're going to execute you tomorrow," He said simply.
"They'll what….."Zoro whispered.
"Helmeppo was never going to honor your agreement. He was planning to kill you from the start, which made the girls and Luffy very angry. So they hit him,' Colby continued.
Zoro looked forward at the girls with a straight face but his voice revealed his disbelief. "You did?" He asked them. The girls just gave a soft smile and a nod.
"Now the Marines are mad and they are dead set in capturing them. Don't worry I"m not going to ask you to become a pirate though," He said to him.
"Technically, we aren't either, we just follow our captain's lead," Lea said simply.
"So, I would hope you'll help them, you have a lot of strength to offer," Colby said as he got one knot untied and worked on another. "Luffy is the only one besides the girls here who can actually save you from execution. And of course, you're the only one who can save them, from a very similar fate." He explains as he ignores Lea. Zoro just stayed quiet.
A deep voice was heard as the girl's turned to see Captain Morgan and a few marines. Their guns were pointed in their direction. "End of the line!" Captain Morgan shouted.
"Oh great..!" Lea muttered.
"For the crime of treason against me-" He boomed as he held his axe arm over his shoulder. "I'll send you all to die. Instantly," He grumbled. Colby stopped what he was doing and screamed, barely making Zoro flinch.
"Great, what a nutcase," Lea muttered.
"It's a shame that the axe that is that glorious is in a man like him," Raven said as she folded her arms and spat in Morgan's direction. Lea just started to laugh at her sister's comment. The laugh came with a grin.
The Marines loaded their guns as their leader continued his spiel. He gave the girls a nasty look as he spoke, "You've been pulling some interesting moves around here. What is this? A terribly thought up coup that you formed with the straw hat?" He asked in a mock tone.
"What did that idiot brother do now," Lea sighed. She loved her brother like any other sibling but he tended to get caught up in things.
"I've always fought alone like a real man does," Zoro said simply. "Not like a coward who hides behind his expendable cronies."
"Roronoa Zoro, don't you dare underestimate me. You may be a strong fighter, but under my authority, you're just a rat," Morgan said coldly. He ignored the remarks that Colby tried to say to him before a round of bullets were fired.
At the last minute, Luffy had shielded them all with his body. This panicked Colby. "Luffy!" He cried.
"Calm down, he's fine," Lea said before Luffy showed Colby that he was fine by grinning big.
His attention then went to the shocked faces around him. "I'm Monkey D. Luffy, and I'm going to be King of the Pirates!" He told them.
Lea then went and stood by his side, "And I'm Alandai D. Lea, and I'm seeking freedom."
Raven smirked and folded her arms. "I'm their trusty blacksmith, Swarz Raven,"
Zoro just muttered, "So you want to be King of the Pirates. You must be completely out of your rubbery mind. Do you have any idea what that means?"
"King of the Pirates means King of the Pirates. How could it mean anything other than that/" He asked as he turned to look at the green haired man.
Colby then grinned. "Yeah, it may sound shocking at first, but it's true. He's completely serious.," He said to him.
"Of course he's serious, he says what he means and means what he says," Lea told them.
Luffy just grins and holds out his hands that held Zoro's three swords. Lea grinned as she studied and admired his weapons. "Here's what I promised you. I couldn't tell which one was yours so I took all of them," Luffy said.
"All of them belong to me, I use the three-sword method," Zoro says.
Raven then took them to study them. She admired the white one and looks at it keenly. "This is a great sword, well crafted," She said before looking at the other swords before frowning. "These are ok, but I could do better," she said.
"Just take em already, just know that when you do, you'll be a government defying villain. So it's either you join or be killed by the Marines execution style," Luffy said simply while showing a smile.
"What are you? Son of the devil?" Zoro asked with a smirk. The girls broke down laughing which ticked off Morgan and his crew. "It doesn't matter, because if I don't choose your side, I would be dead on these sticks. So let's do it," He stated.
Luffy grinned and burst out laughing, "You'll finally join my crew!" It was then that Lea had calmed down before hitting Luffy in the back of the head with a bit of power that she wasn't aware of, "OW!" Luffy muttered and looked at his sister.
"Try not to blackmail to recruit new crewmates, and you forgot that we were in a bit of a situation at the moment," She said before going to Zoro and cut the ropes with the knife that she had in her hand.
Morgan was talking to his crew when a member asked what Luffy was. "Straw hat is no ordinary human being, he must've eaten one of those devil fruits. Those are the ones that we heard rumors about." He then narrowed his eyes and snarled, "It doesn't matter what abilities they have, whoever opposes me will die."
As Morgan ordered his men to charge, Zoro had gotten free and took his swords from Raven with a nod. With a swift clang, Zoro had backed half of the men, while Lea took the other as she made two more arms grow from her own arms. In each of the six hands were her daggers. "Make one move and you die," Zoro said to the officers. Lea burst into laughter as she heard his comment. The faces of the Marines were morphed into fear of the demon and the insane demoness. "This day I officially become a pirate, but I want you to know one thing, while I"m with you I'm only dedicating myself to my ambition," Zoro stated as he stood his ground.
"Which is?" Luffy asked.
"To be nothing less than the world's greatest swordsman," He stated simply.
"So he's going after Mihawk," Lea muttered to herself.
"And if I have to give this up along the way, then I'll hold you responsible and kill you," Zoro continued.
"The world's greatest swordsman sounds pretty good. The King of the Pirates wouldn't have anything less than the best on his crew,' Luffy stated with a broad grin.
"Plus, Lea and I would still be protecting him even then, 'Raven said in a subtle threat. Zoro just smirked.
"Big talkers, from this moment on, criminal or not, I'll spread the name of Zoro throughout the world," Zoro said quite boldly.
"What are you standing frozen for! I want you to kill all five of them!" Morgan barked.
The men began to quake as Luffy started to wind his leg back, "You might want to duck!" He said Lea and Zoro.
"Uh oh," Lea said before the two ducked in time as he swept his leg around, kicking all the marines to the side.
"So he's a rubber man, but then what is she?" A marine asked with wide eyes.
Standing up, Lea put her extra four arms away along with the knives. The men flinched seeing it happened. "I'm a shapeshifter, I ate the Shape Shape fruit." She stated.
"So we have two devil fruit users," said another marine and a few others quaked from the scene in front of them.
"Captain, we don't stand a chance against them," Squeaked another marine that was standing by Morgan's side.
"Yeah, just look at them, they are insane," Cried another.
"Yeah, we couldn't even hold back Zoro!" Said another man.
Morgan then turned dark and muttered, "This is a direct order, every Marine that just uttered weakness, pull your gun out and shoot yourself. I can't do anything with weak soldiers." He then raised his axe hand it sent shivers down his crew's spines.
Zoro just smirked, "What babies," He said as he raised his blades again. "This'll be easy."
"Let me help," Lea said as she pulled out two daggers and got into a position to fight. Before the two could do anything Luffy rushed by as Colby called out his name. Lea blinked before sighing, "I really should've seen this coming."
"BRING THOSE MARINES TO THEIR KNEES!" Shouted Colby, Raven just turned to him with a raised brow but Lea couldn't help but laugh.
Luffy kept Colby's words in his mind as he ran past the Marines and towards Morgan where he jumped and wheeled his hand back before trying to punch him. Morgan was quick for being so large and he blocked his attack with his axe. As Luffy jumps back, Morgan pulls off his coat and mutters, "You low lives, you have no rights to defy my superiority. I am Marine Captain Axe-hand Morgan!"
"And I'm Luffy, nice to meet you," He said before blocking a swing from Morgan. He had jumped again before plowing his feet into the corrupted captain's face, sending him to the ground. The captain skidded a bit before he caught himself.
"You runt!" Morgan snarled as Luffy charged at him again. He held his arm up, his hand holding the implanted axe handle. "Now die!" He roared and flung his axe down and it hit the ground hard causing cracks to form. Luffy had spun away at the last second.
"I don't think so!" Luffy yelled before he spin-kicked MOrgan in the jaw. When Morgan was on the ground, Luffy held him by the shirt and raised his arm back. "You call yourself a marine, but you destroyed my friend's Colby's dream!" He snarled before punching him again.
Back by Colby and Raven, Helmeppo had grabbed Raven and started to try and get Luffy's attention. "Stop right there! Look at what I got!" Luffy just ignored him as he continued to punch Morgan.
"Are you stupid or something!?" Helmeppo asked as he held two pistols up. One was at Colby and the other was at Raven. "I said stop!" He repeated, "If you paid attention to me, you'll find the hostages I have!" Lea just burst out in laughter again seeing his failed attempt at taking a hostage. "Why are you laughing!" He muttered to Lea.
"You literally think you could hold her hostage?" Lea asked in a laugh.
"Apparently he does," Raven said through her stone-faced look before she quickly pulled out a small blacksmith hammer from her hip and swung it at his face. Helmeppo then reeled back as he placed his hands on his face in pain. Raven just glared at him. She then took Colby away from the sad-sack of a man. The two came to the side of Lea and Zoro.
Luffy had looked over to make sure they were ok, and when he turned his attention to them, Morgan stood up behind him. Luffy didn't notice but Zoro and Lea did.
"Time's up, for I am fearless Captain Axe-hand Morgan!" He screamed as he held his axe up. Before the axe could cut through the hat, Zoro had ran up and cut Morgan enough to knock him out. As he did so, Lea had gone and destroyed his precious axe with her knife skills.
As Morgan lay on the ground unconscious, the marine officers talked amongst themselves about his defeat.
"If there is anyone else who wants to step forward to fight us, then do it now," Zoro said bluntly.
The silence then broke when the marines started to cheer for their new found freedom. "That's weird, looks like they are all happy to see their captain's defeat," Luffy said to his small crew.
Colby then gets very energetic and ran towards them. "They must have been scared of him for a very long time," He said.
Zoro started to fall backward but Lea was able to catch him before he hit the ground.
"Zoro, are you ok?" Colby asked in a panic voice. "What's wrong?"
"Just. Hungry,' Zoro groaned. This set Lea into a fit of giggles. Luffy nodded as he motioned for his crew to come with him and away from the fallen man. He had led them to the restaurant that the little girl's mother owned.
After an hour or two eating, Zoro proclaimed that he was stuffed. He patted his stomach and everybody chuckled. Lea was subtly blushing as she gazed upon Zoro. She thought he was very handsome. Raven was at the bar with Colby.
Luffy was sitting across from Zoro and he was still eating when he said, "I can't believe that you are done, you lightweight."
"How can you have a bigger appetite than a guy who hadn't eaten in weeks?" Zoro asked with an amused look.
"It's the Devil Fruit that causes it, plus he eats like gramps," Lea explained. Zoro just quirked an eyebrow when she mentioned their grandfather.
Raven then added, "He eats like a horse," Zoro just chuckled.
"Thanks for the food," Colby said to the owner of the restaurant.
"It's no problem. After all, you guys did save the town, and my Rika," She said as she kissed her daughter's forehead. Rika just smiled happily. Rika then squirmed out of her seat before rushing over to Luffy.
"You're the greatest man I ever met!" Rika said happily as she gave Luffy a hug.
"Awwww, she's so cute!" Lea and Raven cooed.
Luffy started to talk with his mouth full but Lea covered it with her hand. "No talking with your mouth full," She scolded him with a frown.
Luffy just nodded and patted Rika's hair a bit in thanks. He then swallowed as Zoro asked him, "So, how many are on this crew so far?"
"You, me and my two sisters so far," Luffy said simply.
Zoro's eyes widened in shock. "Just…" He said as he pointed everyone out. After that, they started to argue about the number of his crewmates. He calmed down a bit before he asked about the ship. Luffy then stood up and pointed out the window towards the small boat that sat alone in the harbor. Zoro just sighed, "You got to be kidding…."
"Nope,' Luffy said joyfully. "We'll have an enormous one before long!"
"How did I get suckered into having him as my captain," Zoro muttered as he held his head.
"He isn't bad all the time," Lea said as she came over and rubbed his back to comfort him.
"Where are you going after you leave here?" Rika asked curiously.
"We're headed straight for the Grand Line," Luffy answered with a grin.
Colby did a spit-take with his orange juice. "No! Have you completely lost your mind? There's no way!. You have four crew members. There's no way you can get there with that low of members!"
"Paradise isn't all that bad," Lea commented as everyone turned to her.
"What do you mean by that?" Colby asked.
"I was born there and lived there the first few years of my life," Lea said as she took a sip of her own drink. There were a few people who looked at her in disbelief. Raven and Luffy weren't one of them.
"Well, we're going there anyway,' Luffy decided. Colby then went to him and continued to try and talk him out of it.
As Colby was distracted, Raven started to talk to Zoro on Colby's dream. When he heard it, he started to explain why it would be hard to achieve it. It wasn't a moment later when the Marines came through the doorway.
"We heard that you guys are actually pirates. Is this rumor true?" The Lieutenant asked.
"Yeah and I just added my first mate to the crew," Luffy said with a grin.
The man then clears his throat before he continued to speak, "We appreciate everything that you did to save our town from our horrible tyrant. However, now that we know that you are pirates, as Marines, we can not sit idly by and watch you go about your business. Therefore, you and your crew need to leave this town. Immediately," He said though he could tell it kind of hurt him to say it.
The townspeople started to get riled up and a few were yelling at the men. A few were getting into the men's faces. Lea then stood up from the table and everyone went quiet as they listened to what she had to say. She just simply asked, "May I use a Den Den Mushi before we leave. Please?"
The Lieutenant sighed but nodded, "Fine," He said. Then he motioned for another officer to grab the snail. It wasn't long before she had it and she started to dial.
There were a few seconds of silence before a harsh voice was heard, "Vice-Admiral Garp speaking….Who is this!" Everyone was shocked that this pirate was calling a Vice-Admiral.
"Hey Gramps, it's Lea," She said simply and that got people to drop their jaws. Raven and Luffy knew that their grandfather was Garp and it was quite funny to see all the reactions this phone call made.
The snail's face then changed to one of delight as Garp spoke again, "How are you, my lovely granddaughter?" He asked.
"I'm fine, Raven and Luffy are here with me in ShellTown. We mete a corrupt Marine captain and I was wondering if you could come handle it," she asked. "I also found two people who would benefit from your teaching," She said after a moment of silence.
"Two….?" Colby muttered in confusion.
"I will take care of it. By the way, have you three decided to join the Marines yet?" Garp asked.
At this point, Luffy went over and took the snail from Lea and answered him, "No Gramps, we are pirates and I am going to be King of the Pirates."
"You BRAT! Wait till I get a hold of you. Then you will get the Fist-of-Love!" Garp said sternly.
"Bye Gramps," Luffy said simply as he hung up. He then turned to Lea. "So who is this other person Gramps needs to teach?" He asked.
"Helmeppo, who else?" Lea said.
"WHY?!" Colby exclaimed.
"One, because he is redeemable. Two, he needs to learn how to treat people and get through life. And three, everyone deserves a second chance. There is also the fact that he is a wimp," Lea explained.
"Let's go. We have things to do," Raven said as she made her way to the door. Lea, Luffy, and Zoro following behind.
When they made it to the boat they set off trying to figure out where they were to go next. Luffy heard something coming from the dock and saw Colby yelling goodbye as he and the rest of the marines saluted.
"Well that's something you don't see every day," Zoro said with amusement.
Luffy then suddenly threw his arms in the air and yelled, "Next stop! The Grand Line!"