Episode 7: The Strawhat Reverie! Allies unite!
Wealth, Fame, Power. Monkey D. Luffy, King of the Pirates had finally achieved it all, his discovery of the legendary treasure One Piece sent millions of men home from the sea as the treasure hunt for Gol D. Roger's fortune came to a close. However not all were spurred to return to land, as for one new group of pirates, now was the time to return to call of the sea. Luffy may be the Pirate King, but that doesn't mean he can't be overthrown, right?
Now it's time to set sail! For a mystery! Dunno where we will go! Or what we're gonna see!
ONE PIECE!
Gotta find a good crew, and I'll work 'em to the bone! Just no time to rest, it's all mine and mine alone!
I've always believed, this is my destiny! To be the greatest pirate the world has ever seen!
If you're NOT on our side, then you better run and hide! We'll defend 'till the end all of our friends! On that you can depend!
Now it's time to set sail! For a mystery! Dunno where we will go! Or what we're gonna see!
We will never give up! The ship or the hunt!
One Hope! One Dream! One Day!
ONE PIECE!
[Deep in the secluded mountains of the Kano Country]
The art of assassination. A way of life only few can master. Though some, such as the Strawhat Hunters, rely on devil fruit abilities alone, there are other methods of martial arts that provide far greater results than any mind could ever dream of understanding. With over 500 years of history, it is here in the Kano Country that two men have been learning about the most gruesome martial arts of assassination techniques that are known only to the crème of the crop in humanity. Hokuto Shinken, the Divine Fist of the North Star. Nanto Seiken, the Waterfowl Slash of the South Star. Two sides of one coin. Legend has it that masters of these art forms can channel all of their physical and mental strength into one attack, to utterly eliminate any possible target with but a single killing blow. Originating here in the Kano Country, five years have passed for two men who have been learning how to possess such incredible knowledge. Of course with the danger that Hokuto and Nanto pose, each form may only have one successor at a time for a century, and pass on their knowledge to the next in line once the time is right.
"To think that time has passed so quickly" mumbled an old man, who was sitting in front of a fire in his quiet temple, "The evolution that these two men have gone through in such a short amount of time...absolutely remarkable.". [Current Hokuto Shinken Grand Master -Ishikada Pax]
The second old man beside Ishikada nodded, "Indeed...and to pass our tests with such flying colours...running hundreds of meters, swimming thousands of miles, all with a single breath...well...at the very least my student is capable of swimming." he chuckled. [Current Nanto Seiken Grand Master - Oltanis Megatronus]
Standing to their feet, Ishikada and Oltanis folded their arms while glancing back at the two men who were sitting cross legged behind them in silence. "It seems we have truly taught you all there is to know...unless of course, you believe your training is still incomplete" muttered Ishikada.
One of the sitting men shook his head, "Not at all...you've shown me all 708 pressure points, by now it's easily memorised in my head" he grumbled, "Although...I still haven't been able to learn to use the power of Muso Tensei yet...". [CEO of Cross Guild and Former Warlord of the Sea - Sir Crocodile/Successor of Hokuto Shinken/User of the Sand-Sand Fruit/Current Bounty - 3,400,000,000]
Ishikada chuckled, patting the man on the back, "In time, my son...it is only when you truly come to reach the understanding of absolute sadness...absolute grief...and absolute desperation...that you will come to unlock the true meaning of nothingness. You will not find Muso Tensei...Muso Tensei shall find you." he explained.
"While it's good to hear you're certain of your abilities, there is something I still find myself questioning" began Oltanis, grimly looking at the two students, "You boys had it all...wealth, fame, power, titles, status as huge pirate leaders...yet you both came here to us to learn Hokuto and Nanto...to dedicate half a decade to our ways...why?".
"It's a long story...for Crocodile at least...but in my case, I required this training to become stronger as a man so that I might stand a chance at utterly defeating another who shamed me." replied the second man. [CEO of Cross Guild and Former World's Strongest Swordsman - Dracule Mihawk/Successor of Nanto Seiken/Current Bounty - 5,000,000,000]
"I see...I see..." muttered Oltanis, as he looked Mihawk in the eyes, "Tell me Mihawk...what is the name of this person that you wish to defeat?". Mihawk paused for a second, before coldly replying, "Roronoa Zoro.".
[Unnamed Island - New World]
"P-Please don't hurt me or destroy my business! I-I promise you I really don't have anything!" protested the owner of a local bar, while other customers nervously looked on and didn't make a sound. One of the two pirates standing in front of him just scoffed and shook his head.
"Riiiight, you really mean to tell us that a bar owner doesn't have ANY alcohol, despite the fact there's clearly bottles behind you? Besides, I'd imagine you got mountains of barrels round back" one of them said with an annoyed tone. [Strawhat Pirates 2nd in Command and World's Strongest Swordsman -Roronoa Zoro/Current Bounty - 8,985,543,000]
Zoro's partner rolled her eyes, "You really need to calm down, we haven't come here to beat up anyone or destroy your bar, we just came to stock up on drinks. It's just that we aren't paying, what's so wrong about that?". [Strawhat Pirates Head Navigator and Finance Manager - Nami/Current Bounty - 621,000,000]
"Y-You can't just barge into my place of work and demand free service! W-What gives you the right to do such a thing?" stammered the owner. Zoro raised an eyebrow, "Hmph, you do know I am, don't you?" he asked, "I'm the greatest swordsman on the planet with the second highest bounty on the planet and the vice captain of the strongest pirate crew on the planet. I'm Roronoa Zoro for Christ sake, if I wanna have a shitload of drink then I'll get it no matter what. Be grateful I haven't sliced this entire place into rubble, being forced to wait isn't fun for me.".
Nami sighed and clicked her fingers, signalling some subordinates from the Strawhats to walk into the pub. They weren't any big name pirates, just cogs in the machine of the massive Strawhat crew which had numbers nearing 10,000 in their armies. "Hey boys, this man has been pretty unhelpful" Nami explained, looking at her troops and pointing at the bar owner, "Make sure to grab every last bit of alcohol you can find and bring it back to the ship for Zoro...oh! And...obviously if you find any treasures, make sure to give them to me." she grinned, tugging at her shirt to flash her cleavage to her crew. This was enough to make them pick up the slack, as the crew got to work ransacking the entire bar while the owner was restrained. Zoro and Nami waited outside as they watched their crewmates carry out crates, bottles, and barrels filled with all types of booze and wine.
"Ha! See, told you this place was stacked!" Zoro laughed, swiping a bottle of grog and taking a swig. "Y'know I gotta admit, even now after all these years it makes me feel so...ALIVE just being able to walk into a room, have everyone's eyes on me, and get whatever I want without even having to spend any of my precious berries!" Nami grinned, patting her butt pocket where she kept her wallet.
"Mhm, you got that right. I just hope Luffy won't be too mad, you know how we gets when we do supply runs our way instead of his" replied Zoro. Nami nodded, "Don't worry, as long as stop off for some meat to bring back for his dinner he'll just immediately forget about what we did here". Zoro gulped down the last of his drink "Welp, let's head back to the ship. I'm bored of this town now, about time we moved on to another" he grumbled, tossing his bottle behind him as he started walking off. Nami sighed, as she glanced their ship which was within eye-view and at Zoro walking in the opposite direction. "Some things never change, huh?" she thought to herself.
[Strawhat Pirates Base - New World]
The hot sun beat down on the island that the Strawhat crew had established as their base. A large town on a remote island equipped with living accommodations for Luffy's massive crew, it was a perfect fit as a home of operations while being near impenetrable from outside forces that would wish to bring harm to Luffy. Along the large pathway to the front entrance of the fortress, three allies of the Strawhats were making their way inside for an important meeting with the rest of the crew. They were known throughout the world having built up names for themselves over the years back during the original age of piracy, and of course they had managed to maintain their relevancy in the age of Luffy's reign as pirate king.
"Heh, just wait 'till Luffy-senpai gets a load of this shit! I bet he'll totally laugh for sure!" chuckled one, who was holding a newspaper. [Strawhat Grand Fleet Head Admiral and Captain of the Barto Club - Bartolomeo the Cannibal/User of the Bari-Bari Fruit/Current Bounty - 6,666,230,000]
"A laugh indeed! I mean be real, there's nobody who can possibly go against our main guy Mugi-chan, especially not with the force of friendship on his side!" laughed the second one. [King+Queen of the Kamabakka Kingdom - Bentham "Bon" Clay/User of the Clone-Clone Fruit/Current Bounty -2,000,000,000]
The third one sighed and shook her head, "Just remember to keep quiet and stay out of my way. Why Luffy keeps you imbeciles around I'll never know...especially given that I'm all he'll ever need" she pouted, "He just hasn't realised yet, but when he DOES...mhm...I'll finally live the perfect life I deserve". [Empress of Amazon Lily and Captain of the Kuja Pirates - Boa Hancock/User of the Love-Love Fruit/Current Bounty - 4,817,500,000]
Bartolomeo scoffed, "Pah! You always talk about that sorta stuff, but last time I checked you aren't even apart of Luffy-senpai's crew, you're just a lame subordinate!" he laughed, "BESIDES, are you forgetting that it's ME who's got Luffy-senpai's vivre card and is the lead commander of his Grand Fleet?!". Hancock pouted and folded her arms while cursing Barto's name under her breath. Bon-Clay just laughed, "You make me laugh funny barrier man! Always smiles and jokes, indeed!".
The group continued walking down the large hallway, eventually entering into a large dining room. Of course, Luffy was in the process of chowing down on a massive meal, with some of his other allies also present for the meeting. One of them, an incredibly large man with bulging muscles and fur scarf was sitting next to Luffy and eating donuts. "I must say...these pastries are simply divine Luffy" the man mumbled, "I wholeheartedly give my compliments to your chef". [Retired Big Mom Pirates Commander and Current President of Whole Cake Island - Charlotte Katakuri/User of the Mochi-Mochi Fruit/Former Bounty - 1,057,000,00]
"I KNOW, RIGHT?!" Sanji really went all out! I told him today was super important, so I guess he pulled out all the stops!" laughed Luffy, as he bit into some meat. [Captain of the Strawhat Pirates and King of the Pirates - Monkey D. Luffy/User of the Human-Human Fruit Model: Nika/Current Bounty - 10,000,000,000]
"OOH! L-L-L-L-L-LUFFY-SENPAIIIII!" Bartolomeo yelled, quickly running over to Luffy's side and kneeling next to his seat. Hancock immediately knocked Bartolomeo out of the way by kicking him in an attempt to gain Luffy's attention first, which caused Bartolomeo to fight back with a barrier around his fist. Luffy and Katakuri both shook their heads, not impressed with the behaviour.
"OOOOOH! MUGIIIII-CHAAAAAAN!" Bon-Clay cheered, jumping onto the long table and spinning towards Luffy while doing a pirouette. Luffy gasped as his eyes shined, "BOOOOOON-CHAAAAAAAN!" he squealed in excitement, embracing the okama in a tight hug while Bartolomeo and Hancock slammed their foreheads into the table, unable to understand why Bon-Clay was always given more attention than they were. Katakuri didn't exactly understand the interaction in the slightest, as he just sat and quietly ate his donuts.
"Ayyy, what's with all this gay shit, ah?" came a gruff voice as a stout man in a fancy suit walked in with smoke billowing from his cigar. [Captain of the Fire Tank Pirates - Capone "Gang" Bege/User of the Castle-Castle Fruit/Current Bounty - 500,000,000]
"I believe it's just the reuniting between two friends" replied Katakuri, as Bege took a seat next to him, "I must admit, I didn't quite expect to see someone like you here Capone". Bege shrugged, "Meh, I was in 'da neighboi'hood and figured I'd drop by after gettin' a little somethin' in the post from my strawhat pal over 'dere" he explained. "Ah...I see...fair enough" muttered Katakuri.
Luffy and Bon-Clay eventually calmed down from their reunion, as Luffy once again took his seat at the head of the table while the remaining participants for the meeting entered, such as Jinbe who was representing the Fishman Islands, Momosuke representing Wano, and Rebecca representing Dressrosa. Naturally they happy to see Luffy again, though as everyone was seated Luffy noticed two empty seats.
"Hmmmmm...HEY GUYS! Has anyone seen Vivi? She should've been here by now! I think?" pondered Luffy. One large man shook his head, "I believe word has been getting around that Alabasta has been quite busy, and as such Queen Vivi won't be able to attend" he explained. [Fishman Island Lead Ambassador and Former Warlord of the Sea - Jinbe/Former Bounty - 1,100,000,000]
Luffy sighed, "AW MAN! That sucks, I was looking forward to seeing Vivi again" he pouted. Hancock scoffed, "Why worry about seeing a princess when you have an empress right here?" she cooed. Luffy grinned, "Because...I mean...you're an ally Hancock...but Vivi is my friend!".
Hancock quickly went silent, while Bartolomeo tried to stifle a giggle. "Heh, denied." he whispered to Bon-Clay, who burst out laughing. Luffy sat up straight in his captain's seat, "Oh well, guess we can still have our SUPER IMPORTANT TALK with all of us instead! Soooooooo...what's been going on with you guys?". "Heh, the foist pirate reverie and he has no idea what we should even be doin' right now" Bege muttered under his breath. "Don't lose faith!" a young man snapped, "Luffy most likely has the intention that we explain the current status of our individual kingdoms and territories, as well as discussing any important events that might have been revealed to the world!" he exclaimed. [Shogun of Wano - Momosuke Kozuki]
"Ah, in that case I have something important!" Bartolomeo exclaimed, as he proudly produced the newspaper that he had been reading earlier, "According to an article here, the World Government has signed a deal to bring on five pirates turned assassins called the 'Strawhat Hunters' to kill Luffy-senpai!" he explained, tossing the newspaper to Luffy so he could read it. "Naturally I'm already taking precautions! As head of the Grand Fleet, me and the rest of the boys will make sure that our one true king of the pirates never has to fear danger!" laughed Bartolomeo.
"Interesting...so in a way these 'Strawhat Hunters' are similar to the old warlord system?" asked a woman, "I wonder if that's really a smart idea for the World Government to do. I mean we all know how dumb the warlord system ended up being" she scoffed, before glancing at Jinbe & Hancock, and pausing for a second, "Um...n-no offence guys". [Queen of Dressrosa - Rebecca]
"Aheh, no offence taken in the slightest. Even I have to admit, the warlord system was quite ridiculous when you actually look at what it represented. Pirates like myself and Hancock were just...allowed to continue enacting crimes but never had to face any consequences because we aligned ourselves with the navy and world government. If anything I'm surprised the system didn't face issues until the War of Marineford when Doflamingo and Blackbeard abandoned their titles" he said, "Personally I had no qualms abandoning the warlord status...although...hmhm~...I did hear that a certain warlord went a tad insane with rage when her title was revoked" he chuckled, nudging Hancock's shoulder which only made her even more annoyed.
Momo raised an eyebrow, "A-Anyway...um...M-Mr Bartolomeo, did that paper identify the assassins who have been hired to go after Luffy? We should keep an eye out to make sure they don't achieve their goal! Right?". Bartolomeo nodded, "Mhm, there's some pictures and names of the guys to look out for. From what I heard, every one of them has strength equivalent to a 5 billion bounty all by themselves".
"Who cares about what how high deez' 'ere bounties are, ah? All that mattaz' is blowin' dem' bastards to hell" grumbled Bege, puffing a cigar. "Besides these assassins, there really wasn't anything else I had in mind to talk about Luffy-senpai. My apologies" sighed Bartolomeo. "Unfortunately I too haven't much to discuss" added Hancock, "Things have been quite slow as of late, the only thing on my schedule is that my boy is coming home later this week.".
Bon-Clay raised an amused eyebrow, "OOOOOOH! A potential romantic partner, HMMMMMMM?" he giggled. Hancock scoffed and slapped the okama, "How dare you make such an assumption you cretin?!" she snapped, "Of course it isn't a lover, I'm talking about my precious baby boy! If anything, the only thing even remotely related to sexual activities is that I'll probably have to talk with his father which...isn't something I look forward to" she admitted. "Baby boy? You mean Hayami, right?" asked Bartolomeo, "Nice guy but I don't think he's a baby, isn't he like...seventeen?". "Irrelevant, he'll always be my little angel" scowled Hancock in an ominous tone.
The meeting continued, mainly regarding discussion of the five Strawhat Hunters. Though the others seemed relatively unfazed, especially Luffy himself, Bartolomeo, Bon-Clay and Hancock were secretly fearing for Luffy's life knowing he had a group of professional hitmen after his head.
[Meanwhile, in the Alabasta Kingdom...]
Dark grey clouds hung over the sky of the entire kingdom of Alabasta, a low rumble of thunder being the only sound that was heard besides the low breeze and swirling sands. It had been like this for a few months now, barely anyone would leave their homes as they chose to stay hidden away inside. At the royal palace, the thunder was at it's loudest as the dark clouds spewed from a large contraption sitting on the roof. Inside the palace there was a chilling silence as the spotless palace was cleaned by the staff. The silence didn't last however, as the large double doors of the throne room were swung open as a large man clad in a fancy jacket stomped inside, being followed by some guards. The person lounging on the throne looked up with an unamused expression on their face.
"BAAAAAAHAHAHA! BAAAAAHAHA!" bellowed the rotund man as he smugly marched towards the throne and pointed at the person sitting on it, "OI YOU! Where was my grand welcome, hmm? Vivi is always sure to make sure I travel in style, fit for a king! Yet when I arrived, NOTHING!" he boomed. [King of the Black Drum Kingdom - Wapol of Tin/User of the Munch-Munch Fruit]
One of the guards nervously saluted, "P-Pardon the interruption to your fruit time, m-my liege...b-but this man has come to s-see you" he stammered nervously.
"Duly noted" Wapol snarked, thinking that the guard was speaking to him.
"Hmph...what exactly is your purpose of barging into my home like this?" mused the person on the throne. Wapol scoffed, "I have an important discussion that needs to be had with Queen Vivi of course! My Wapol-Toystore chain of stores has multiple establishments all over Alabasta, yet I haven't received any of my payments in months! I won't stand for it anymore, a king like me shall get what he's owed!".
"Yahaha~...you make me laugh, round man...impressive." laughed the person on the throne. "Pah! So what? Whether you laugh at me or not doesn't matter, what DOES matter is that I give that damn Vivi a piece of my mind for tryna cheat me on my money!" Wapol snapped, "Now, are you gonna tell me where she is, or am I gonna have to find her myself?".
The person on the throne raised an eyebrow, "You would be wise to watch your tongue...Wapol, was it? Maybe you should just take a breath and relax, I'm sure we can reach some kind of agreement that'll make everyone happy" they mused.
Wapol pouted, "Hmph! I don't need a breath...I need something to eat, NOW!" he yelled, marching over to a massive stone pillar and taking a massive chunk out of it with his teeth. The person on the throne was surprised, while guards tried to say anything since they knew Wapol wasn't a man to be messed. After a few minutes, Wapol had finished eating the stone pillar, brushing the rubble of his face with a gloved hand.
"Finished?" the person on the throne muttered. "OF COURSE NOT! I finish eating when I SAY I'm finished, got that? Honestly, you'd think that you'd know that by now, being Vivi's husband and all!" Wapol yelled, taking a bite out of another stone pillar. "Yahaha~...my friend, you're sorely mistaken...you really think I married that blue haired woman? Oh no no no...not in the slightest.". "HMMMM? You say you aren't married to Vivi but...you're sitting on her throne, aren't you?" Wapol grumbled.
"But of course...after all, that's what happens when one takes over a kingdom. They sit on the big chair that symbolises power and authority. Obviously, there's nobody else who deserves it more than I" the person on the throne explained. Wapol raised an eyebrow, shocked to hear that the Nefertari's had been overthrown, "Really? I...I-I see! And...*gulp* t-tell me this, who exactly are you? You must be a pirate of sorts I assume?".
"Hmph, a pirate? Aheh...heheh...yahahahaha~...of course not, I'm not a pirate" the person began, before smirking as thunder claps began to increase in volume, "I'm not a pirate...I'm God.". [New Ruler of Alabasta, Kami of the Moon, Former Kami of Skypeia - 'God' Enel/User of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit]
[New Marineford - New World]
Black smoke filled the air from a cigar as a muscular man sat behind his desk while five men sat in front of him. "Alright...you jokers better listen good and listen close" he began, "You're said to be some of the best in the world when it comes to fucking people up, and that's saying a lot coming from me. Now...you all know by now who you're targets are, the leading commanders of the Strawhat Pirates...and of course, killing Monkey D. Luffy is your top priority, no exceptions." he snapped. [Navy Lead Fleet Admiral - Sakazuki Akainu/User of the Mag-Mag Fruit]
One of the men, a young looking fellow with a grey trench coat, swept his flowing black hair out his face, "Duh...I already know that...it's not like this Luffy guy is exactly hard to miss...just gotta look for a doofus in a strawhat, no biggie." he sighed. [Strawhat Hunter - Straits/User of the Clock-Clock Fruit]
Akainu rolled his eyes, "Don't give me an attitude like that boy, you better remember that the World Government is only giving you a pardon for your past crimes if you and these other idiots fulfil your end of the deal. You mess up, and I'll see to it that every single one of you is locked up in Impel Down at a level where no one can hear you scream" he growled, "understood?".
Straits and the other hunters all nodded and replied with a "Yes Sir", though some had more care than others. "It pains me to say it, but you five are the best hope we have at taking out the pirate king once and for all, especially given that Smoker has really been pushing his luck recently by blatantly disregarding my orders so he can play a game of tag with some no name clowns that just entered the Grand Line a few weeks ago" he grumbled, "To think one of my finest admirals got knocked on his ass by a man who's only power is to become a slinky...pathetic." he scowled, as hot steam gently rose from his body, "Still...I did hear from sources that he managed to arrest a pirate with a 600 million bounty...some dumbass with a jet devil fruit if my memory serves me right." he explained.
"Tch, clearly the navy only employs the finest of men it seems, heheh~" chuckled a man leaning against the window, "I still can't believe how dumb the abilities are of your current admirals...a woman who can make cages and handcuffs...a goody two shoes who just relies on haki...and Smoker, a man who's only power is to become smoke and give everyone lung cancer within a 20 mile radius" he sneered. [Strawhat Hunter - Flynn/User of the Aqua-Aqua Fruit]
"Tough talk for a dude who's only power is to turn into water" chuckled Straits, "The hell are you gonna do if just wears a jacket and brings an umbrella, rain on them?". Flynn scoffed, "Ah shaddup, my devil fruit is AWESOME and you know it!". Straits laughed, "Yeah yeah, you'll totally kill that Luffy guy...by blowing bubbles at him.". Flynn clenched his teeth, "I SAID SHADDUP!".
"ENOUGH." snapped Akainu, taking a puff of his cigar and causing a silence in the room, "I said it once and I'll say it again, if you jokers don't get your heads in the game and get this job done, I'll personally make sure you all have any trace of your existence eradicated." he scowled, making Straits and Flynn stop talking. Akainu leaned back in his chair, "Now...here's what you're gonna do. Three of you are gonna be deployed here in the New World and try to find wherever it is that Monkey D. Luffy has set up shop...Straits, I'm sending you to paradise near the start of the Grand Line with a little navy assistance, you got the task of finding Smoker and bringing him back here so that'll he stop wasting his time with small name pirates and focus on taking out the literal pirate king.".
"Aw maaan, why do I have to get the lame job?" Straits sighed. Akainu looked down over the bridge of his nose, "Because I said so. Because I don't like you.". Straits shrank back in his seat a little, "O-Oh...I...fair enough..." he quietly whispered.
Akainu nodded, and glanced at Flynn, "As for you...you're also gonna go to paradise, not as far, but still within the region. There's a man who usually handles navy prisoners that I want you to check up on, it's been months since anyone has heard word from him and his operation, you're gonna go and scope it out to see what's going." he ordered.
Flynn scoffed, "Seriously? I'm an assassin meant to kill the PIRATE KING, not your damn errand boy!". "Yeah well you and Father Time over there have really been getting on my nerves as of late, so until you prove to me that you can handle the big boy duties you're gonna be my carrier pigeon. Deal with it.".
Flynn folded his arms and pouted, but didn't have the courage to argue back as he knew when to keep his mouth shut. "Now then...I believe there's nothing else left to discuss" nodded Akainu, "Get your asses out there and get me some damn results" he ordered, "And remember...don't disappoint me men.".
{TO BE CONTINUED}
