Luffy and Zoro were sailing, their stomachs grumbling with hunger.
"When are we arriving at the next island?" Zoro asked, resting his hand on the hilt of his sword.
"Soon," Luffy replied cheerfully.
"Hey, Captain, can you explain your Devil Fruit?"
"Sure!" Luffy said, grinning. "It's the Water-Water Fruit. But I've advanced it to the point where I can control the temperature of water too."
"Whoa, that's insanely powerful!" Zoro said, genuinely shocked.
"Yeah, it is. The main weakness of Devil Fruit powers is seawater and Seastone," Luffy explained.
"But… aren't you able to control the sea since you're basically water yourself?"
"Yeah, I can, but Seastone still affects me quite a bit," Luffy admitted.
Suddenly, he laughed. "Hold on tight, Zoro—it's going to get rough!"
Zoro instinctively gripped the side of the boat, but nothing could have prepared him for what happened next. The boat's speed increased significantly, slicing through the waves. Within just a couple of hours, they arrived at an island called Orange Town.
"This island feels off," Luffy whispered as they stepped onto the land.
"Yeah, something's not right about this place," Zoro agreed, his tone monotone but alert.
As they wandered through the eerily quiet town, they saw two men chasing a girl running toward them.
"Hey, boss, I got the map! Mind taking care of these two for me?" the girl shouted before darting off in another direction.
"Huh?" Luffy thought, not fully processing what had just happened.
One of the men snarled, "We're the Buggy Pirates, and since you're her boss, we'll have to kill you!"
Zoro sighed, glancing at Luffy. "Captain, can I handle this?"
Luffy grinned. "Do what you want."
With a single slash, Zoro cut both men down in the blink of an eye.
Luffy's eyes caught sight of the orange-haired girl now perched on a rooftop.
"Why did you do that?" Luffy asked, slightly annoyed.
She shrugged. "I saw what you did on Alvida's ship and decided siding with you was the safest route."
"Okay," Luffy said simply. "What's your name?"
Before she could answer, Zoro interrupted, annoyed. "Isn't it rude not to say your name first after what you did?"
The girl flinched at his tone but responded. "My name is Nami, and I steal from pirates."
"I'm Roronoa Zoro, and that's—"
"My name is Monkey D. Luffy, and I'm going to be King of the Pirates!" Luffy shouted with his trademark grin.
"Y-You're pirates?!" Nami exclaimed, her tone shifting to anger as she momentarily forgot their feats.
"Do you have a problem with that?" Luffy asked, his tone suddenly more serious.
Nami's mind raced. This might be my chance—it's now or never. "How about we team up? I'll give you 20% of what we steal together," she suggested.
Zoro stepped forward, annoyed. "You're trying to rob us and offering almost nothing?"
Luffy noticed the look in Nami's eyes and spotted the tattoo on her arm.
"Zoro, stand down," he commanded.
Zoro stepped back, waiting for Luffy to speak.
"I know you're with Arlong," Luffy said bluntly. "But my question is—are you with him by choice or by force?"
Nami froze, her face a mix of shock and horror. "How did you know?!"
"Your tattoo gave it away," Luffy said. "What are your strengths?"
Nami sighed, realizing she had to answer truthfully if she wanted to survive. "I'm a navigator—the best one you'll find," she admitted.
"Great! Will you join my crew?" Luffy asked, his grin returning.
"WHAT? Do you hear yourself, you idiot?!"
"Will you join my crew?" Luffy repeated without missing a beat.
"No! I despise pirates with all my heart."
"I can free you from Arlong," Luffy said confidently.
"No, you can't," she stated firmly. "It's impossible."
Luffy grinned. "I know Buggy's here. How about we get some food, and then I'll deal with him to prove myself, huh?"
"Fine," Nami agreed reluctantly.
She led them to a small, abandoned house. Luffy studied the surroundings with interest.
"What happened to this town?" he asked curiously.
"All the villagers were scared off by the pirates that rule this place now," she explained.
"I hate people like that," Luffy said, his tone serious.
"You're all the same—none of you are different," Nami snapped.
"Not everyone is like that, Nami. People like that aren't true pirates. They're just criminals and cowards. A true pirate is someone who takes care of his crew, his friends, and his family. A true pirate doesn't judge you for what you are, but for who you are as a person," Luffy said firmly.
Nami was stunned by his words. She had never imagined a pirate could think that way. A tear slipped from her eye as she wondered, What if… instead of Arlong, someone like Luffy had come? What would have changed?
"Zoro, we're going to beat those bastards to the ground, alright?" Luffy said.
Zoro smirked. "Yes, Captain."
"Wait, wait, wait! We can't go in there without a plan!" Nami said in surprise.
"Don't worry. Zoro and I will deal with them while you get the treasure," Luffy said with a smile.
"Works for me," she shrugged.
Facing Buggy, Luffy, Zoro, and Nami arrived at Buggy's location.
"Hey, Captain, there's a few people here. One of them is Roronoa Zoro," a pirate reported.
"Roronoa, huh? Did he come for my head?" Buggy wondered aloud.
"Zoro, be careful. Always overestimate your opponents, no matter how insignificant they seem. And most of all, be careful," Luffy said.
"I will deal with Buggy myself," Luffy added.
"Alright," Zoro said, drawing his swords.
"Oi, you big red-nosed clown! Come out here and fight me!" Luffy yelled.
The area fell silent. Every pirate thought this man had just signed his death warrant.
"How dare you?! You're just a small fish in a big sea!" Buggy roared, launching his Bara Bara Festival at Luffy.
"And you're an even smaller one," Luffy replied, sending a wave of seawater drenching Buggy's separated body parts, weakening him considerably.
"Y-You're a Logia?!" Buggy muttered before Luffy's seawater-infused punch knocked him unconscious.
"That was quick," Luffy muttered to himself.
Meanwhile, Zoro had just unleashed a powerful slash, sending several pirates flying. He then spotted two strange figures—a man riding a unicycle and another riding a lion.
"What the hell are those two doing?" Zoro muttered, preparing for another fight.
"I'm Cabaji!" the man declared.
"And I'm Mohji!" the other added.
Zoro scoffed. "You two are weird."
"How dare you?!" Cabaji snapped.
"Let's deal with him, Mohji," Cabaji said as the two rushed toward Zoro.
Seeing that his captain was already done, Zoro decided to go all out.
"Three Sword Style… Oni Giri!" he shouted, holding two blades in an X-shape and his third in his mouth as he moved at incredible speed, slicing through both Cabaji, Mohji, and the lion in a single instant.
"Good job, Zoro," Luffy said. "Next time, I'll let you drag the fight out. I just wanted to test you."
The two walked toward a stunned Nami.
"Well, our business here is done," Luffy stated.
"Yeah," Nami said slowly.
"Let's get some stuff before we leave," Zoro suggested.
"Alright. By the way, where's the next stop, Nami?" Luffy asked.
"Syrup Village," she replied. "I heard there might be a boat there that we could get instead of that small one we have."
"Good idea. The Grand Line is the most dangerous sea. This vessel won't handle it at all," Luffy said.
Some time later at the port, Luffy and his small yet growing crew spotted a group of armored villagers, with the mayor leading them.
One of the villagers asked, "Hey, who are you? Are you one of the pirates?"
"No, but we dealt with the pirate problem already. Don't worry about it," Luffy said casually.
As they entered their small boat, Luffy spoke up. "You two hold on tight. This will be fast."
This time, Zoro was prepared and made sure to warn Nami about what was going to happen.
Before she could doubt it, the small boat started sailing at speeds of 60 km/h.
"This is insane," Nami muttered as she finally got a grip on the situation she had gotten herself into.
"That's just the first phase," Zoro said, sighing as he laid down. "You might want to inform the captain on which direction to go," he added, closing his eyes.
Nami quickly rushed to Luffy and started steering the vessel while checking her map.
"At this rate, we'll arrive two days earlier than expected," she said.
"How long?" Luffy asked curiously.
"Probably two days, but normally it would take over a week," she replied.
"I guess I sped up the time!" Luffy laughed as he rested on the wooden floor, his straw hat covering his eyes.
"Hey, Luffy, where did you get this straw hat? It seems oddly familiar," Nami asked.
"This was a gift from one of my dearest friends," Luffy said.
"Who is it?" Nami asked curiously.
Luffy grinned. "Red-Haired Shanks."
Surprise washed over her as the dots finally connected.
"YOU KNOW THE YONKO SHANKS?!" she screamed, finally realizing why Luffy was so strong.
"Yeah, I also ate the Devil Fruit that he had," he laughed joyfully.
"This is just absurd," Nami muttered, still unable to process everything.
"Well, I don't know about you, Nami, but I'm hungry. I'm going to eat," Luffy said.
"Okay," she said, still pondering whether or not to take up Luffy's offer to take down Arlong.
But I'm so close. I can't mess this all up, she thought to herself as she entered the small cabin on the ship.
Hey guys I know the chapters seem short but I don't see a point in dragging out the East Blue like other fanfics, I wont however rush this story don't worry. The next chapter will be a bit longer than this anyways signing out, peace.