AN: There is a TL;DR at the end of this first part, so if you don't like my yapping, skip right to it.
After watching and reading One Piece, I always wondered what would happen if A, they were all a little more real and dark, with more human responses to their traumas, and B, if they weren't so keen on pirates because of said traumas. This fic tries to portray a more realistic story about the crew and their array of feelings towards the world around them. They differ from canon as to how they behave around people, around themselves, and especially around pirates.
Let's talk about Luffy. In this fic, he's not infatuated with pirates, even though he knows Shanks and his crew, and this Luffy also has a different Akuma no mi, the Goru Goru no mi (Enel's fruit), which allows him power over 'electricity', and if you think canon Luffy is a genius because of the fight applications he found with the Nika, wait until you see this one.
Although this Luffy is virtually the same as canon, he has a completely different personality, more serious and not at all cartoonish, but still with a sense of humor. He's well spoken and knowledgeable because he studied at the times he couldn't sleep because of what happened, so he pulled up all nighters, and when he was not training, he was reading anything Garp or Dadan brought him. She took this opportunity to teach him everything she knew and had the habit of buying any books that would hold his attention, and because of that, Luffy has superficial knowledge about many subjects.
This Luffy has a big justice drive, but at the same time, incredible disregard for rules and figures of power. He is angrier more often and has specific triggers. Also, because he's not overly fixated on becoming the Pirate King, he's a little more interested in everything else, this being money, recognition, respect, and girls, the latter not in the way you're probably imagining(because of the trauma he endured, as depicted below).
Since he wasn't at all interested in becoming a pirate after what happened, Garp was a big part of his youth, and because he could see the flame of justice in his grandson's eyes, altogether with his regret of not being there when Makino needed him, he decided to teach him about Haki from a young age, grooming him to join the Navy as a high-ranking officer in the East Blue from the get go, imagining he'd use this power to make the Navy even stronger, but Luffy had a different plan in mind.
Yes, he's going to be a little overpower in comparison to all enemies in the first sagas, but keep it in mind that because of the things he's about to do in comparison to canon, he's going to attract a lot of attention from some dangerous people way earlier in his journey, not to mention that all the times they found an overpowered character in the early sagas (Mihawk for example) and survived by cheer luck or because the script said he would, are now moments of tension or fights, since he's well trained in Haki and has medium control over his fruit's power, and since we're talking about being overpower, let me say those weird nerfs to make up for gaps or continuity errors will be corrected to show real strengths (all those who should have Haki will have it and not forget they had it, including all Shichibukai and most of their strong subordinates).
And about Luffy's fruit, there will be an explanation about how the fruit got to him way later in the fic, so hold your horses.
This is a fic with its primary focus on angst, drama, and romance, with Luffy's ingenuity and fight proficiency following closely, so if that's not your cookie, see you around. These focus changes will also inadvertently result in changes on the crew, so keep it in mind that if you see them acting differently from canon, that's because of said changes.
Now, to the major changes that result in this abomination of a fic.
When Luffy was 10, the village was raided by some dangerous pirates, and he was forced to see Makino being killed by these pirates because of a grudge they held against Shanks' crew. She was raped, tortured, and murdered in front of the entire village because she tried to defend other women who were being assaulted as well. Garp later found and executed these pirates, but Luffy never fully recovered from what he saw, and that's how he became what he is in this fic. He used his youth to train and become strong so he'd never allow anything like that to happen again, and while doing so, found his devil fruit (again, this will be explained later in the fic). Because of his powers, and the lack of people who could tell him about them, he asked for knowledge on devil fruits to Garp, who gave him the devil fruit encyclopedia, and that became his bible. You could say that, when it comes to devil fruits, he has even more knowledge than Teach.
Oh, and before you go and accuse me of pulling rape out of my ass to create angst and drama, let me point it out that we have actual proof of the barbaric atrocities committed not long ago in the era of the caravels and galleons, and that in a fictional world where pirates have actual powers, they would be way worse. We're talking about pillagers and murderers who would indulge themselves in anything that would give them pleasure, so this is me showing you what would really happen if canon wasn't so family-friendly.
This is rated M because of the language and the heavy topics I just mentioned, such as murders, rapes, torture, kidnappings, and everything bad a pirate-based world would have if not depicted for a younger reader base.
Oh, the crew is going to be extended as well, and there may be romance between them, except for Zoro, because I have someone in mind for him (And no, it's not Tashigi), Brook, because there's no way in hell that's happening on my watch, and Franky cuz I can't really see him in romance, I believe he fulfils the role of a fuckboy much better. Well, it will all depend on how it feels moving forward with this.
I'm not sure yet, but maybe, just maybe, two members of the crew from canon will not join, not because Luffy doesn't want them, but because of the differences in philosophy. This Luffy is darker, angrier, and fairly broken, so there might be some members who won't tolerate his choices, but we'll see.
I'm giving a description of everyone's fits as we move forward, and at first, they will be wearing their canon fits, although I may change the order and colors. For starters, Luffy is wearing a version of his post-time-skip fit, the red and blue one with a yellow ribbon from Saboady, but this one is black, and his ribbon is light blue, also, there's no hat in this story, at least not how you imagine.
You must be asking yourself now, is this a villain Luffy fic? Or a super edgy Luffy fic? Well, that depends entirely on you, your moral compass, and what you define as edgy. For people who have never experienced any trauma, they might think it's over the top, but I'm trying to portray actual feelings, so of course they're going to be a little over the edge.
If you don't like it, don't read it, and if you liked it but disliked something I did or found a mistake I made, feel free to leave a review, but remember, you ain't paying me for this, so be careful with your words.
One last thing, about the money system in the One Piece universe. To make it easier to understand the value of things, I'm gonna give you this trick. Every time there is a value in berries, subtract two numbers from the right, and you'll have the value in Dollars (let's say what you could buy around the 00s years). For example, a bounty of 30.000.000 berries transforms into 300.000 Dollars, which is actually a fortune considering this table:
[100 Berries equals 1 Dollar and can get you three heads of cabbage or three watermelons]
[1.000 Berries equals 10 Dollars and can get you a small goat or a small boar or a sack of grain, or a barrel of worn tools]
[10.000 Berries equals 100 Dollars and can get you two cows or four large boars or four large goats, or five crates of vegetables (potatoes, tomatoes, onions, garlic, lettuce, carrots, zucchinis)]
[50.000 Berries equals 500 Dollars and can get you an ordinary katana]
[100.000 Berries equals 1.000 Dollars and can get you a small ship (Caravel for six people), or provisions for a month (Twenty crates of vegetables and fruits, twenty crates of grain (equals three sacks each), twenty chickens, twenty boars, and twenty goats]
[250.000 Berries equals 2.500 Dollars and can get you a grade katana]
[500.000 Berries equals 5.000 Dollars and can get you a skillful-grade katana or a simple two-deck Galleon]
[1.000.000 Berries equals 10.000 Dollars and can get you a great-grade katana or a four-deck stocked Galleon]
[10.000.000 Berries equals 100.000 Dollars and can get you an armada (ten galleons) or three battleships (armed and designed for all-out war)]
[100.000.000 Berries equals 1.000.000 Dollars and can get you an island (documented by the government) or a supreme-grade katana]
[ Berries equals 10.000.000 Dollars and can get you anything the money can buy]
Now, shall we?
TL;DR- Luffy is dark/edgy, had a traumatic past, has Enel's fruit, has deep knowledge about devil fruits, has two types of Haki from the beginning, was trained by Garp, wants to end the pirate era because of said trauma, and isn't a complete idiot (can read and talk like a normal human being), there will be drama, romance, and angst, no harem, normal girls who love you won't share, although there will be disputes for love, there will be triggering subjects like slavery, murders, kidnappings, rapes, and torture, money is simplified (just subtract two numbers from the right and you'll have the value in Dollars), enemies will be coherent with their powers, knowledge and Haki will be introduced from the get go, Zoro is a little more human, reflecting his young age, Sanji is a fuckboy (actually has some game, and there may be light smut, not exclusively to him, Usopp isn't useless, trains Haki, Nami has girl feelings, also trains Haki, Robin has woman feelings, also trains Haki, Chopper won't be so innocent, also trains Haki, Franky is a fuckboy (only before he turns into a fucking gigantic cyborg) and you guessed it, also trains Haki, Brook will be darker and have a different kind of humor, still perv, but less repetitive and cartoonish, and guess what? Also trains Haki. The crew will be stronger and train Haki from Luffy, but there will be different and harder obstacles way earlier, fillers and movies may be included, it depends on whether they're good or important to the story.
"Speaking out loud."
'Thinking.'
Highlighted information, emphasis.
(Translations)
[Titles, books, signs]
Written Knowledge.
*Sounds*
Chapter One - The Age of Pirates is doomed.
The sun was way high in the sky, while a pinkette boy pushed the barrel he had just found lying around at the beach, until he turned inside the cellar of the ship, which had its lateral door open, and faced three of Alvida's pirates who were checking boxes.
"Oy, whatcha got there, Koby? Is it rum? We looking for sum rum." One of the pirates asked while smacking his lips.
"I- I think so-"
"Think so?!"
"Yeah, whatever is inside is moving as I push-"
"Then ya know what we should do? We should drink it, boys! It's just us in 'ere, so the Captain will never know. I mean, there's just us and Koby, and you ain't seeing anything, right Koby?" The pirate raised his fist, and Koby shook his head in despair, closing his eyes.
"I didn't! I didn't see anything- Please don't hurt me-"
*BAM*
The barrel's cover exploded, and they all saw a boy getting out of it while yawning.
"Whuaa! What an awful nap, everything was spinning." He said to himself at the same moment the three pirates shouted:
"OOY, WHO IN THE FUCK ARE YOU?!" And before he could answer, they had their swords drawn, and the boy's expression changed in a heartbeat.
Koby noticed it was cordial and neutral at the moment he turned at them, but it became dark and dangerous the moment he saw their weapons, making Koby look outside for a moment while deciding if he should run or not, but when he looked forward, two pirates passed flying by his sides, messing his hair, hitting the pier wall with a loud crack before sliding to the ground, blood coming out of their heads, and then, he looked at the boy again, who had the third pirate by his throat, squeezing it, until he passed out, throwing him aside. Koby couldn't move, terrified of the boy, who seemed plain at first, but who was terrifying at second glance.
Koby noticed he was wearing a black open cardigan with a light blue ribbon around his waist, black shorts that went to his knees, and black straps around his bare feet that went up to his knees. Koby couldn't believe his eyes, looking over his shoulder again to confirm what he just saw. This boy just managed to defeat three of Alvida's pirates like it was nothing, a boy who was now analyzing him.
"So I guess this is a pirate ship. Are you part of their crew?" He frowned while jumping and sitting on top of a second barrel, tilting his head, as if wondering how a tiny little kid could also be a pirate, and Koby was fast to deny the assumption.
"NO! I'M NOT! THEY KIDNAPPED ME-"
"Huh." The boy looked Koby in the eyes for a few moments, making the pink-haired boy tremble. It was almost as if the boy was trying to read his mind.
"Please don't hurt me." Koby said low and defeated, and the boy tilted his head.
"You know, sometimes you gotta stand for yourself, even if that means getting hurt, because sometimes it's better to get hurt but fight back, than to roll over and be a coward."
That sent Koby a wave of shame that made him look down in silence. After a moment, he looked up at the boy, who jumped down the barrel he was sitting on to just casually walk around, opening barrels and eating anything he found inside.
"Who- what were you doing inside-"
"My boat sank, and I decided it would be better to just float around for some time. I guess it has been almost a week."
"A week?! But- What about food and water? What about the bathroom?"
"I had some food and water with me, and shitting in the ocean is nothing new, but I knew I'd find land, so I just took a few naps. Who are you and where am I?"
"Ah- My name's Koby, and this is called Goat Island. No one lives here, so it serves as a base for the pirate Alvida."
"Alvida, huh? 5 million." The boy whispered to himself, and Koby frowned, but didn't ask.
"And this Alvida was the one who kidnapped you?"
Koby scratched his head and blushed, looking down.
"Yeah."
"And why didn't you try escaping?" The boy asked while picking a piece of cured meat and some ale.
"I mean, every time I see her, I can't do anything- I'm too scared to go against her-" Koby tried explaining himself, but when he looked up, the boy was gone, and he looked around, seeing him walking outside towards the island.
"WAIT WAIT WAIT! Where are you going?! Alvida is going to find you-"
"I don't care, and I don't really like cowards like you very much, heh."
The poor boy received a coward arrow to his back and sank to the ground before sighing.
"Yeah, I wouldn't like a coward like me, either." He whispered to himself and looked at his own hands for some time, for so long that he thought the boy was gone, but then, the boy was back right in front of him, making him look up.
"Is not about being a coward, it's about deciding to keep being one once you learn that you are one." The boy came even closer and squatted in front of Koby.
"All you need is to do it once, and you will never be a coward again."
"Wha-"
"WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED HERE?!" They heard a loud voice and turned to where they came from, just in time, a giant woman appeared from the door, rushing towards them with a mace that was almost her height, followed by what seemed to be her entire crew.
"KOBY! WHAT'S THE MEANING OF THIS?! YOU'RE NOT TRYING TO ESCAPE, ARE YOU?!" Her voice was raspy and loud, making the boy narrow his eyes.
Koby began shaking and then, he looked at the boy who was staring right back at his face, seeing him raising one long finger as to signal 'once' and he felt a warm sensation spreading through his body. For some weird reason, the thought of being his pathetic self in front of this boy was worse than facing the giant mace Alvida carried.
"I- I'M GOING TO LEAVE, YOU HEAR?! I'M LEAVING AND I'M GOING TO JOIN THE NAVY! AND AFTER THAT, I'M COMING BACK HERE TO CAPTURE YOU AND YOUR CREW-"
*WHAM*
For a woman of her size, Alvida was quite agile, leaping forward and striking Koby with her mace, but she didn't hit him. Weird, she could've sworn she closed the distance enough for the mace to at least break his arm.
Koby fell to the ground and felt stunned by fear, but at the same time, something in him had awakened, a sensation that was so good that he had to do it again.
"I'm gonna let this slide, Koby, if you repent and tell everyone who's the fairest among all the seas, huh? Who's the prettiest and the fairest of them all, huh?"
"Lady- Lady Alvida-" Koby started, and the woman smiled, but then, Koby looked at the boy one more time, seeing his gaze.
"LADY ALVIDA IS THE UGLIEST OLD HAG OF THEM ALL! SHE STINKS AND FARTS NON-STOP!"
"You little-"
"Pffft! Hahahahaha!" The boy laughed, and Koby got up, seeing that Alvida was fuming.
"I'll teach you a lesson, you insolent little shit-" And she raised her mace again, but this time, Koby crossed his arms in front of his face and gritted his teeth, prepared for the impact that never came.
He closed his eyes before the pain, but all he felt was a tingling sensation in his body, and when he opened his eyes again, he was behind the boy, who was standing in the place he stood, and Alvida struck again, but with a simple side step, her massive mace passed close to his head, hitting the sand again, making Koby choke on his words, but before anything else happened, the boy looked over his shoulder and smiled.
"Good for you, Koby. How does it feel, not being a coward anymore? The Navy, huh? That's a nice dream." His smile was so very warm, and Koby instinctively smiled back, just when he saw Alvida pulling her mace for a second strike, but the boy was still looking at him and not at his opponent.
"WATCH OUT!" Koby shouted, but the boy kept looking at him while the giant mace came diagonally, but to Koby's surprise, the boy leaned aside, as the mace passed inches from his face and body, and Koby could see his wide smile when the strike sent sand all over them, and the moment he spun in place at least three times before his feet found its way to Alvida's chin. She could do nothing but stare at his smiling face as his right foot hit her jaw, sending her flying away across her crew, straight to the side of her ship, breaking the wood as she passed clean through and disappeared inside. Her crew just stared in shock, seeing their Captain being thrown away like a rag doll, a few of them pulling swords and pistols, but then, they heard the boy's chilling voice.
"All of you who want to keep your bones intact, drop your weapons and ready us a dinghy with food and water, didn't you hear that Koby is leaving this island to join the Navy?"
The boy kept staring at the men for a moment, and when they didn't comply, he simply raised his right leg a little, and all weapons hit the sand.
"You have ten minutes." He said low.
"YES, SIR!" They said in unison and ran to the port. The boy turned to Koby, who was in shock after what he had just witnessed, but found his voice to whisper.
"Who in the world are you?"
"The name is Monkey D. Luffy, the man who's going to find the One Piece."