Syrup Village
"LADY KAYA!"
Merry's voice echoed through the mansion as his footsteps thundered up the stairs. He didn't bother knocking. He pushed open the study doors with uncharacteristic urgency, clutching a freshly printed paper in his trembling hands.
"Miss Kaya—have you seen this!?"
He held it out.
A wanted poster.
Kaya gently took it from him.
Her eyes scanned the page once.
Then she smiled.
A soft, proud smile.
"So they finally noticed," she said calmly.
Merry blinked. "You're… not surprised?"
Kaya shook her head slightly, still looking at the poster.
"Usopp told me once that Luffy wasn't the kind of man who could stay small forever," she said. "People like that… the world catches up to them sooner or later."
She looked out the window, toward the sea.
"If Usopp is moving closer to his dream," she said quietly, "then I can't afford to stand still either."
She folded the poster carefully.
"I'll work harder too."
Merry straightened unconsciously.
"Yes, Miss Kaya."
Shells Town (Formerly Shell City)
A broom scraped across stone floors.
Coby paused mid-sweep.
Something on the wall caught his eye.
A wanted poster.
He stepped closer.
"…Luffy."
His eyes widened.
Then—he smiled.
Not bitter.
Not afraid.
Proud.
"So you really are chasing it," he said softly. "Your dream."
He gripped the broom tighter.
"When we meet again," he said, voice steady, "it'll be as enemies."
But his smile never faded.
Somewhere in the Grand Line
A black boat cut silently through the surf.
Mihawk stepped onto shore.
Instantly, swords were drawn.
"D-Don't come any closer, Hawk-Eye!" a pirate shouted, hands shaking as he pointed his blade forward.
Mihawk stared at him.
Bored.
"…Take me to your captain," he said.
The pirates fled into the jungle.
Mihawk followed at an unhurried pace.
Minutes later, the trees opened up.
A camp.
Laughter.
Empty bottles.
A familiar red-haired man sitting on a log.
"Oi," Shanks said without turning around. "You're loud, Hawk-Eye."
Mihawk stopped a few steps away.
"I recently met someone you might find interesting," he said, unrolling a poster.
Shanks turned.
His eye widened.
Then—
He laughed.
Deep. Genuine.
"Well I'll be damned," Shanks said, standing up. "He did it."
The crew gathered around.
"Oi oi—what's that!?"
"That brat!?"
"HAHAHA!"
Shanks grabbed a bottle and poured drinks.
"Hawk-Eye," he said cheerfully, "you're not leaving."
"I wasn't planning to," Mihawk replied dryly.
Shanks raised his cup.
"Our student just got his first bounty."
"To Luffy."
"TO LUFFY!" the Red Hair Pirates roared.
Foosha Village
Makino's bar was packed.
Music. Laughter. Raised mugs.
"A hundred million, can you believe it!?"
"From our village!"
"That boy—he really did it!"
The mayor crossed his arms, scowling.
"Hmph. Pirates are pirates."
Makino smiled gently behind the counter.
"He's chasing his dream," she said.
The mayor looked away.
"…Or fulfilling his fate."
Aboard the Going Merry
Silence.
The wanted poster lay on the deck.
Everyone stared.
Everyone except Luffy.
He grinned.
"I'm official now," he said proudly. "Look at that photo."
The image showed him standing amid the ashes of Arlong Park, lightning cracking behind him, eyes cold and unyielding.
WANTED
Monkey D. Luffy
Nickname: "Straw Hat" — The Thunder Demon
Bounty: 100,000,000 Beli
Dead or Alive
"…A hundred million!?" Usopp screamed.
Johnny and Yosaku froze.
Nami smacked Usopp upside the head.
"IDIOT! This is bad!"
Zoro exhaled slowly. "With that bounty… Headquarters won't ignore us."
"Neither will bounty hunters," Zoro added.
Everyone tensed.
Luffy raised a hand.
"Relax."
They looked at him.
"If they don't send Kizaru," Luffy said casually, "we're fine."
"…Who?" Nojiko asked.
"The one Marine who could actually give me trouble," Luffy replied.
The deck went quiet.
"They know who trained me now," Luffy continued. "They'll try to stop us before the Grand Line."
He looked at Nami.
"Set course for Logue Town."
Nami nodded immediately.
Sanji frowned. "Why stop there?"
Luffy smiled.
"Because every pirate worth remembering does."
He turned toward the horizon.
"It's where Gol D. Roger was born."
"And where he died."
"The City of Beginning and End."
The wind shifted.
Logue Town awaited.