The sun bled across the horizon, its dying light casting long, ominous shadows as the Miss Love Duck slid silently toward the formidable Marine base of Shells Town.
On deck, the pirates were bound, grumbling and defeated. Nami was at the helm, her face a stone mask of concentration. Alvida stood by, her expression a thundercloud of resentment.
Luffy stood at the prow, the Straw Hat casting a shadow over his eyes. Beside him, Coby was visibly trembling, his hands clammy and his face pale. He was repeating Nami's lessons in his head like a mantra: Shoulders back. Chin up. Speak clearly. Never let them see you hesitate.
The base, a fortress of grey stone and iron, loomed larger, a symbol of absolute order.
That order was about to be shattered.
__________
A sharp-eyed Marine on patrol froze, his spyglass fixed on the ship's approaching silhouette. He recognized the garish, Duck-shaped figurehead instantly.
"P-Pirates!" he stammered, his voice cracking with panic. "It's the ship of 'Iron Mace' Alvida! Sound the alarm! ALL HANDS TO THE DOCKS!"
The cry was picked up and echoed, sending a wave of panic through the base. Within moments, the news reached the top floor of the central tower, where a colossal man with a jaw of steel and an axe for a hand sat upon a throne-like chair.
"Alvida?" Axe-Hand Morgan roared, rising to his full, intimidating height, his voice shaking the very windows. "That fat cow dares to sail into my harbor? USELESS FOOLS! ASSEMBLE THE MEN! We will greet these pirates with cannonballs and cold steel!"
He stormed from his office, his metal jaw glinting malevolently. By the time his platoon of terrified Marines had scrambled into formation and reached the docks, their rifles aimed and ready, the Miss Love Duck had already docked, silent and still. Morgan gritted his teeth, his axe-hand flexing with a low scraping sound.
"READY YOUR RIFLES!" he bellowed. "ON MY COMMAND, OPEN—"
His order was cut short as the ship's gangplank was lowered with a loud creak. But instead of a charging horde of pirates, the first figures to emerge were a shambling line of them, their hands bound tightly behind their backs. They were shoved forward onto the dock by Coby, who was trying his best to look intimidating and mostly failing.
At the end of the procession came Luffy, casually pushing a struggling and very reluctant Alvida.
The Marines stared, their rifles half-raised in confusion. A murmur of disbelief rippled through their ranks.
"We're bounty hunters," Luffy announced, his voice carrying clearly across the tense dock. "We've come to cash in the bounty on the Alvida Pirates."
Relief washed over the rank-and-file Marines. As they moved in to cuff the prisoners, a junior officer with a clipboard approached, his expression wary. "The bounty... yes. Do you have the proper identification?"
This was the moment. Coby took a deep, shuddering breath and stepped forward, Nami's training kicking in.
"We do," he said, his voice surprisingly steady, echoing with a confidence he absolutely did not feel. "The bounty for Captain 'Iron Mace' Alvida is five million Beri. The combined bounties for her subordinates total one-point-five million. We expect the full amount of six-point-five million Beri, as per Marine regulations."
The officer blinked, taken aback by the boy's professional tone. He exchanged a look with his superior, who gave a slight nod. "O-Of course. Please, come with me to process the payment."
As Coby was about to be escorted away, Axe-Hand Morgan strode forward, his massive form towering over Luffy, casting him in complete shadow.
"Bounty hunters?" Morgan sneered, his voice dripping with condescension. "I've never seen your faces before. You look like a pair of street rats. State your names."
"I'm Luffy. This is Coby," Luffy replied, his expression utterly unreadable. "We're new to the business."
"I see," Morgan said, a cruel smirk on his face. "Well, 'Luffy,' you will be subjected to a full interrogation. We must ensure this isn't some elaborate pirate trick."
"Of course," Luffy agreed easily, his calm demeanor unnerving the surrounding Marines. "In fact, I have some information for you myself, Captain Morgan. A matter of great importance. It's something that, if reported correctly to Marine Headquarters, could see you earning a major promotion. We should discuss it... in your office."
Morgan let out a harsh, grating laugh. "Gahahaha! You think you can give me orders, boy? I am the great Captain Morgan! You will speak when I tell you to speak!" He leaned down, his face inches from Luffy's. "Don't test my patience, or I'll have you thrown in the same cell as your catch!"
Luffy didn't flinch. He just held Morgan's gaze and said, quietly but clearly, his voice a blade in the sudden silence, "My grandfather wouldn't be very happy to hear you threatened me, Captain. You've heard of Marine Vice-Admiral Monkey D. Garp, haven't you?"
The arrogant smirk vanished from Morgan's face, replaced by a flicker of shock, then disbelief. "Garp... the Hero of the Marines?"
"That's the one," Luffy said. "My name is Monkey D. Luffy."
Morgan stared, his mind racing. The boy had the same 'Monkey D.' name... If it was a lie, it was a bold, suicidal one. If it was true... threatening Garp's grandson was a career-ending move, if not a literal death sentence. Self-preservation won out over pride.
"Very well," Morgan growled, straightening up, his voice tight. "We will speak in my office. But know this, boy: if I find you are lying, I will execute you on the spot with this very axe!"
He turned and marched back toward the base. Luffy, with a now wide-eyed Coby in tow, followed him into the heart of the fortress.
__________
From the deck of the Miss Love Duck, Nami watched them all disappear into the imposing structure. Luffy, Coby... both gone. The Marines were busy herding Alvida and her crew toward the prison block. The docks were clearing.
Soon, she was completely alone.
Her heart pounded in her chest. A promise of a share was a promise, but who trusts a pirate? Especially a monster like Luffy. What if they never come back? What if this was an elaborate trap and she was next?
Her life's mission, her village's freedom, it all depended on money. She couldn't afford to be captured here. This was her chance. She could take the ship and vanish.
Without a second thought, the Cat Burglar's instincts took over. She rushed to the mast, grabbing the thick ropes. With practiced, desperate speed, she began to hoist the main sail. It started to rise, the canvas catching the evening breeze.
Freedom was inches away.
Just as the sail caught the wind and the ship began to shift, an unbearable pain shot through her entire being.
ZZZZZZAAAAAP!
It was the same metaphysical agony from before, a lightning bolt behind her eyes that set every nerve on fire. A strangled scream escaped her lips as her muscles locked up, and she collapsed to the deck, the rope slipping from her grasp. The sail fell, and the ship settled back against the dock.
The contract had rendered its judgment once more. Betrayal was not an option.
__________
High above in the tyrant's tower, ignorant of the drama on the docks, Luffy's own plan was in motion. They ascended to the top floor, to a large office decorated with taxidermy and a massive, egotistical statue of Morgan himself.
"This had better be worth my time," Morgan snarled, sitting behind his desk.
"It is," Luffy said. "But this is top-secret. Information that could change the power balance in the East Blue. We can't risk being overheard. No one can be on this floor."
Morgan, now convinced he was about to receive a career-making piece of intelligence, barked an order into a Den Den Mushi. Within a minute, the entire floor was cleared, leaving them in absolute privacy. He locked the heavy office door himself.
"Now," Morgan said, turning to Luffy with greedy eyes. "Speak."
Luffy leaned against the desk casually. "Did you ever wonder why a pirate crew as powerful as the Red-Haired Pirates decided to make a sleepy little place like Dawn Island their home base for a year? Ten years ago?"
Morgan leaned forward, intrigued. "Get to the point."
"Well," Luffy continued, a faint smile on his lips, "the thing is..." His eyes went cold. His entire posture shifted from relaxed to a coiled spring of lethal intent.
"...it doesn't matter."
Before Morgan could even process the change in tone, Luffy moved.
"GOMU GOMU NO... PISTOL!"
WHAM!
His fist shot across the room like a cannonball, slamming squarely into Morgan's steel jaw. The metal held, but the force of the blow rattled Morgan's brain in his skull. His vision swam with black spots, a high-pitched ringing filling his ears. He was dazed, stunned, his mind struggling to understand what had just happened.
He didn't get the chance.
"GOMU GOMU NO... GATLING!"
Luffy unleashed a blinding flurry of fists. The air filled with the sound of a machine gun as dozens of punches rained down on the stunned captain. The steel jaw-guard cracked and buckled under the relentless assault. Another series of blows targeted his axe-hand.
KRRR-CHUNK!
The metal housing shattered, and the axe-head clattered uselessly to the floor. Morgan, who hadn't even had time to stand up, slumped back in his chair and then slid to the floor, unconscious.
Luffy stood over him, breathing steadily. After a moment, he calmly began tying the defeated tyrant up with a rope from the flagpole in the corner. He waited.
When Morgan's eyes fluttered open, the first thing he saw was the cold, round mouth of a pistol aimed directly between his eyes.
"You will sign a contract," Luffy stated, his voice devoid of all emotion.
Even beaten and bound, a spark of defiance lit in Morgan's eyes. "Never... I serve justice! I will never bow to a pirate!"
BANG!
An explosion of agony erupted in Morgan's right shoulder as Luffy pulled the trigger. He screamed, the pain overriding his pride.
"I wasn't asking," Luffy said coolly, pressing the hot barrel of the gun to Morgan's forehead. A shimmering golden scroll appeared. "Sign it."
Tears of pain and humiliation streaming down his face, Axe-Hand Morgan reached out with his good hand and touched the scroll.
__________
Hello, people! Hope you're doing fine.
I've noticed it's quiet in the comments, so I figured I'd try to break the ice myself. Speaking of breaking things, have you read the latest official news that just dropped for One Piece? What are your thoughts on it? I'd love to hear them!