Chapter 3: Setting Sail and the First Encounter
I stood on the deck of my ship at the Foosha Village docks. I had bought this vessel from the System Shop because I absolutely refused to start my journey drifting inside a barrel like the original Luffy.
Initially, I had wanted to sail the Going Merry or the Thousand Sunny, but after putting some thought into it, I saw no point. The System Shop offered ships that were leagues beyond anything in this world. I decided to buy a vessel with technology so advanced it would make even Dr. Vegapunk jealous. With a ship like this, coaxing Franky to join my crew in the future would be a walk in the park.
The ship was massive and meticulously designed. Every future crew member would have their own private quarters. Beyond that, it featured a state-of-the-art training room, a massive library, a sleek meeting room, an aquarium, a high-tech laboratory, a gourmet kitchen, and three spare rooms for miscellaneous needs.
What was the point of having a System if I didn't flex a little? I had transmigrated into this world with knowledge of the future and an overpowered cheat. There was no way I was going to suppress myself. I was going to do this in the most extravagant way possible.
A large crowd of villagers had gathered at the docks to bid me farewell. Because I had spent my childhood actually helping out and being a sensible, caring kid instead of a constant troublemaker, the turnout was much larger than in the original story.
I waved from the deck, flashing my signature wide grin. "I'm going to become the King of the Pirates! I'll make the village proud!"
"What nonsense are you spouting now?" one villager yelled back, laughing loudly. "Pirate King? You're just gonna bring shame to the village!"
"Oi, Luffy!" another chimed in. "Your grandpa is really gonna kill you if he catches you out there! You want another taste of his Fist of Love? Hahaha!"
I just shrugged off their teasing, knowing there was no real malice behind it. Mayor Wood Slap and Makino were standing near the front of the crowd. Makino looked up at me with a warm, sisterly smile, telling me to be careful and to visit whenever I could. Our bond was much stronger than in the canon timeline. I promised her I'd be safe, and with a final wave, I set sail.
I named my magnificent vessel the Flying Raijin. It wasn't just a name; for a hefty sum of Fate Points, I had bought a ship that could actually fly. I kept its wildest features hidden for now, saving them to completely blow the minds of Usopp, Chopper, and Franky when the time came. Just imagining their star-struck faces made me grin like a madman.
Setting out was a breeze. I had already taken care of the Lord of the Coast—the local Sea King that originally bit off Shanks's arm. I had punched it into submission years ago, and now it was thoroughly tamed, rarely daring to show its face near the village.
With a Log Pose pointing toward Shells Town already secured, I let the ship sail at a leisurely pace. Without the barrel incident, I wasn't entirely sure if I would still run into Coby or Alvida, so I decided to just let fate run its course.
After a day of smooth sailing, I was lounging on the deck, revising some of my long-term plans, when something in the distance caught my eye.
It was a pirate ship. The Jolly Roger flapping in the wind was a skull turned sideways, with hearts in place of a brain.
Is that Alvida's ship? I thought to myself.
[Yes, Luffy. That Jolly Roger belongs to 'Iron Mace' Alvida,] Selene confirmed in my mind.
Perfect. I already had my own Straw Hat Jolly Roger proudly painted on my sails, so there was no mistaking my ship for a civilian vessel. I walked into the control room and steered the Flying Raijin directly toward them. I was genuinely excited to meet Coby, even with all the changes I had made to the timeline. It seemed fate had a funny way of correcting its course.
As I drew closer, I noticed the Miss Love Duck had completely dropped anchor. They were just sitting there, likely debating whether to attack me. In the East Blue, Alvida was considered a top dog, so her pride would usually demand she poach any ship in her territory.
But my ship was a serious problem for them. Anyone with half a brain could tell the Flying Raijin wasn't normal. It was almost larger than Shanks's Red Force, with an incredibly sleek, futuristic design. Its pristine white hull gleamed under the sun, accented by striking gold trim. On the starboard side, the words Flying Raijin were etched in elegant gold lettering.
I pulled up right alongside them. The entire crew of the Miss Love Duck was gathered on their deck, staring up at my ship in stunned silence.
I jumped down from my deck, landing smoothly amidst her crew. I gave them a cold, piercing stare, leaking just a tiny fraction of my Conqueror's Haki—just enough to suffocate the air without knocking anyone unconscious.
The silence was deafening. They looked at me like I was the Grim Reaper himself. Even the seagulls overhead seemed to stop crying.
Scanning the terrified crowd, I quickly spotted a small, pink-haired boy with round glasses. Coby.
I kept my demeanor cool and mysterious. My gaze finally landed on Alvida. Honestly, I wanted to burst out laughing. The absolute injustice of Oda's pen was on full display. The difference between her future Devil Fruit glow-up and her current state was like comparing a supermodel to a rotten onion.
I looked at the pirate trembling closest to me, pointed lazily at Alvida, and kept a deadpan expression. "Is that ogre someone you guys captured, or are you all her prisoners?"
The temperature on the deck practically plummeted. The crew's sheer terror of me was suddenly eclipsed by their primal fear of their captain's vanity.
Alvida's face contorted into a mask of pure, ugly rage. "How dare you?!" she shrieked, hefting her massive iron mace. "I'll kill you!"
As she charged like an angry bull, I decided to lean into the absurdity. I struck a dramatic fighting pose.
"Everyone, look closely!" I announced to the frozen crew. "Witness a grand Ogre Subjugation! American Bullshit!"
I threw a casual, utterly ridiculous punch. The sheer force of the impact caught her square in the gut, sending her flying backward until she crashed violently through the wooden walls of her own cabin.
The pirates stared at the splintered hole in horror. Seeing their terrifying captain swatted away like a bothersome fly amplified their fear of me tenfold.
But one person wasn't looking at me with fear. Coby rushed out from the crowd, his eyes wide with awe.
"T-That was incredible, mister!" Coby stammered, trembling with a mix of adrenaline and nerves. "I don't know who you are, but I admire you so much! I was captured by these pirates, but my real dream is to become a Marine of absolute justice! Please, sir, can you teach me to be strong?!"
While Coby was begging, a loud groan echoed from the rubble. Alvida was pulling herself out of the splintered wood, barely able to stand, looking at me with pure, unadulterated shock.
Coby shrieked and immediately dove behind my legs. "M-Mister! You might not know this, but Alvida is a terrifying pirate! If she gets up, she's going to kill us!"
I just laughed, looking down at the shaking kid. "Don't worry about it. There's absolutely nothing she can do to me. By the way, I haven't caught your name yet."
Coby peeked out from behind me, relaxing just a fraction. "M-My name is Coby. Mister, please, can you rescue me from this ship?"
I looked at him calmly. "Alright, Coby. I'll rescue you. But if you want to pursue your dreams, you have to find your own bravery. You have to fight for it. Do you have the guts?"
Coby froze. He looked up at me, then peeked over at the battered, furious form of Alvida. He was still terrified of her.
"What did you just say, Coby?!" Alvida roared, her voice hoarse from the impact. "Are you trying to make me angry?! I'm going to beat you to a pulp! Tell this brat—who is the most beautiful woman on all the seas?!"
Sweat poured down Coby's face. He clenched his fists, squeezing his eyes shut as he fought a fierce internal battle. Finally, remembering how easily I had sent her flying, he bet everything on me.
"You're the ugliest, fattest hag on the ocean!" Coby screamed at the top of his lungs. "And I'm not afraid of you anymore!"
Alvida saw red. Forgetting I was even there, she raised her mace and charged blindly at Coby.
Deciding this farce had gone on long enough, I stepped smoothly into her path. Without a word, I drove a fist deep into her stomach. This time, the force sent her rocketing off the deck, launching her high into the sky until she was nothing but a twinkle in the distance. I briefly wondered if she'd still stumble upon Buggy after a hit like that.
The remaining pirates dropped their weapons, paralyzed, wondering what horrific fate awaited them. Not wanting to waste another second on this filthy deck, I unleashed a slightly stronger burst of Conqueror's Haki. Their eyes rolled into the backs of their heads, and they collapsed to the floor in unison.
Coby looked around at the unconscious crew, literal stars shining in his eyes. "Mister, how did you do that?! Can you teach me? Can you help me become a strong Marine?!"
I let out a loud laugh. "Hahaha! That was the easy part. If you work hard and grow strong, you might be able to do it too someday. Come on, let's go. I'm done with this ship."
I grabbed Coby by the back of his collar and leaped high into the air, landing gracefully on the deck of the Flying Raijin.
Because Coby was still incredibly weak, the massive jump nearly gave him a heart attack, and he landed on my deck looking like he was about to cry. I walked up to the control room, set the coordinates for Shells Town, and came back out.
Coby had finally caught his breath and dusted himself off. He bowed deeply. "Thank you so much for saving me, mister. But... you still haven't told me your name?"
"No need to thank me! Hahaha!" I flashed him a blinding grin. "My name is Monkey D. Luffy. You can just call me Luffy. And I'm the man who's going to be the King of the Pirates!"
Coby smiled nervously. "Ahaha, Luffy-san. So you're going to be the King of the Pirates... wait. Did you just say Pirate King?"
The realization hit him like a physical blow. The color completely drained from his face. He began to sweat profusely, his mind connecting the dots: the terrifying aura, the massive ship, the effortless destruction of Alvida. If I was a pirate, and I was that strong, he thought he had just traded the frying pan for a volcano.
Tears welled up in his eyes. "B-But... you just saved me! You aren't really a pirate, right?!"
I kept the massive grin on my face and pointed up at the main mast. "Nope. I really am a pirate. Look."
Coby's eyes followed my finger to the skull and crossbones wearing a straw hat. His soul practically left his body. He slumped onto the deck in absolute despair.
I couldn't help but laugh out loud at the miserable sight. Deciding to put him out of his misery, I crouched down to his level. "You don't have to worry, Coby. I'm not going to hurt you. After all, I'm a good pirate."
Coby stared at me, completely dumbstruck. "Good pirate" was an oxymoron he couldn't even process.
While his brain was short-circuiting, Selene's voice chimed in.
[Luffy, the System has determined that you have the opportunity to drastically alter Coby's fate. Do you wish to proceed?]
Alright, Selene, I thought, a devious smirk forming on my lips. Buy a Body Strengthening Pill and a Haki Awakening Pill from the shop. Let's see what a competent Coby can do in the future.
I felt quite satisfied. All I had to do was sneak the pills into his food.
Coby finally scraped together the courage to speak again. "But Luffy-san... I've never heard of a good pirate. Aren't all pirates evil?"
"Hahaha, what do you mean by that?" I asked, standing back up. "Your view of the world is way too narrow, Coby. Being a pirate doesn't automatically make you evil, and being a Marine doesn't automatically make you good. It's a person's nature that determines their character. You'll understand that soon enough."
I knew he would fully grasp that concept once we met Zoro and Captain Morgan.
"Just don't worry about it!" I laughed. "Pursue your dream if you really want it! Now, enough talking. I'm starving. Wait here, I'll make us some food."
I walked into the high-tech kitchen and prepared two cups of instant ramen—items I had stocked from the System Shop. Into Coby's cup, I quietly crushed and mixed the Body Strengthening and Haki Awakening pills.
When I brought the steaming cups back out, Coby eagerly devoured his without a second thought, his brow furrowed as he silently pondered my words about good and evil.
A notification screen popped up in my vision.
[Ding!]
[You have significantly altered an established fate. You have been awarded 50,000 Fate Points.]
[Current Fate Points: 1,157,881]
I smiled as I watched the numbers tick up.
I was already an overpowered force of nature. The only entity in this world that made me even slightly cautious was Imu, simply because their strength was a complete unknown. But putting the Empty Throne aside, I was completely confident in my own power. I didn't need to focus on getting myself much stronger right now.
Instead, I was going to focus on making my crew stronger. So strong that they would shake the very foundations of this world.
If the original Straw Hats were the standard model, my crew was going to be the "Straw Hats Ultra Pro Max Limited Edition."