Aboard the Going Merry.
Luffy lay draped over the ship's sheep figurehead, a look of melancholy on his face.
They had left Syrup Village behind. They had a new crewmate, a sniper. They had received the Going Merry as a gift from Merry himself. They no longer had to sail in that tiny boat that capsized easily, forcing them to hide in a barrel.
These were two happy events combined.
So why did it feel like something was missing?
That's right. It was boring.
Why was it boring?
Before reaching Usopp's village, they had fought a fat woman with a club, quickly followed by a battle with a Marine with an axe, and then they encountered Buggy. Finally, they had a proper skirmish between pirates.
But none of it had been truly satisfying for him.
His grandpa had said that when he returned, he would have to continue his training if he wanted to qualify as an outstanding Marine... But I'm the man who will become the Pirate King!
Remembering his grandpa's fists, Luffy shivered involuntarily.
"Luffy!"
Smack!
That hurt!
I'm a rubber man who ate a Devil Fruit, so why can I feel pain?
His head throbbed with a burning pain, little gold stars dancing before his eyes. As Luffy gathered his wits, he looked up and met the gaze of the orange-haired girl. Her cheeks were puffed up with anger as she stretched his cheek out.
"Luffy, the dessert I had in the fridge! It was you again, wasn't it?! You've almost single-handedly eaten through our supplies for several days, and now you couldn't even leave my last dessert alone!"
Nami was fuming.
She thought to herself, if he wouldn't even spare a dessert, would he eventually squander all the treasure she had hidden away?
Nami needed money, she needed it desperately.
Otherwise, she would never have become a pirate.
"It wasn't me, Usopp ate it," Luffy said, his eyes darting to the left as he whistled.
"Ahaha, is someone calling me?"
Not far away, a long-nosed man seemed to have just woken up, rubbing his eyes. "I accidentally fell asleep last night while practicing with the cannons."
Nami gave Luffy a kindly smile.
Did this guy not know he was an open book?
"Then why couldn't it have been Zoro?!" Luffy yelled.
Then he remembered, aside from sleeping, Zoro seemed to be training on the deck all the time.
They were both pirates.
How could the difference be so vast!
Someone who didn't know better might think the green-haired guy was the captain of this ship.
Smack.
Nami let go of his cheek. "Forget the dessert. In light of your numerous offenses, I've unilaterally decided to ban you from the storeroom!"
"It should be fine if I go, right? We haven't run into any Marines or pirates lately, but a ship needs firepower." Usopp stepped forward. "I'm going to give the Going Merry a major upgrade!"
"No," Nami refused outright.
Usopp: "Why?!"
Nami: "The storeroom is where we keep the valuable things, including the nautical charts I've drawn! Those are treasures you can't even buy with money!"
...
Luffy wasn't interested in their conversation, his gaze fixed on the endless blue ocean ahead.
It was perfectly normal to go days without seeing anyone while sailing.
But first, he should probably gather his crew.
The most important member—the cook!
Otherwise, there wouldn't even be the fun of passing the time before they reached land.
Zoro was a training maniac. Luffy saw in him a reflection of his younger self, being put through hellish training by his grandpa.
The only difference was that one was voluntary, the other forced.
He had finally started his own adventure; he didn't want to go back to those days!
"I'm strong enough already."
He hadn't yet met anyone who forced him to use his full strength.
He had set out to sea to become the Pirate King, to become the freest person in the world!
Just like Shanks.
Everyone would give him face.
"Swordsman, navigator, sniper... I've found them all."
"That's a huge step forward towards my goal of gathering ten crewmates!"
"When will we reach the next island? I feel so empty and lonely... I shouldn't think about it. Thinking about it just reminds me of the training plan Grandpa made for me back then. I couldn't even get three hours of sleep a day!"
...
His expression turned incredibly resolute, as if he had lost something precious in the past.
Tap, tap, tap.
Luffy glanced over. It was Usopp, sneakily beckoning him over.
Did he have something fun in mind?
Luffy's face, which had looked utterly drained for hours as he lay on the figurehead, as if a succubus had sucked all his energy away at night, instantly lit up with vitality.
He was immediately interested.
"Nami's sunbathing on the deck right now. Let's go treasure hunting in the storeroom?" Usopp suggested.
"But Nami just told us not to go in."
"Did you agree?"
"No."
"I didn't agree either," Usopp said, patting his shoulder. "Besides, you're the captain, aren't you?"
That made sense.
As expected of the sniper he valued so highly, he was clever.
I am the captain!
The captain can go wherever he wants.
Usopp, in truth, just wanted to find someone to share the blame with, and Luffy was the perfect candidate.
"Let's go! Treasure hunt!" Luffy grinned widely.
The storeroom held the treasure from Buggy, and also stuff from that man who used even more swords than Zoro.
Nothing got a pirate more excited than a treasure hunt!
The storeroom was locked.
Luffy's method was to use a bit of force and accidentally break the door open.
Usopp stopped him; this was a job for lock-picking.
Inside, the storeroom was neatly organized by Nami, everything in its proper place.
Usopp's target was the various tools and equipment. Luffy rummaged through chests and cabinets nearby, full of enthusiasm at first, but aside from Berries and some jewelry, he didn't find anything else.
This wasn't the adventure he was looking for.
"I'm going out."
Luffy said, his face a picture of boredom.
The adventure he imagined should be more like a treasure chest turning into a monster, then carrying them off to some unknown island, where they would discover a legendary pirate's secret treasure.
"Wait, wait, wait! What am I supposed to do if you leave?" Usopp was still gathering the things he wanted. If Luffy left and attracted Nami's attention, what would he do?
His eyes fell on a pendant in a box, and he casually tossed it to Luffy.
Usopp said with a serious expression, "This is a relic left behind by a great pirate! They say it holds clues to a hidden treasure!"
Really?
Luffy then began studying the pendant.
It felt cold to the touch.
It looked like a deep nebula, covered with symbols near the break.
Luffy felt that Usopp had turned back into "Usopp the Liar." Why would a pendant have anything to do with treasure?
"What is your dream?"
A voice suddenly sounded in his ear.
"I'm the man who will become the Pirate King!"
Luffy answered instinctively.
Wait, who was talking?
He looked down at the pendant in his hand, his eyes lighting up. He sneakily glanced at Usopp, who was asking him what he had said. Luffy's eyes darted to the left, and he whistled, saying it was nothing.
He would find the treasure in secret and amaze everyone!
That night, Luffy tossed and turned in his bed, unable to sleep. By the moonlight, he took out the pendant he had hung around his neck and examined it from all angles.
This ocean was the most mysterious place; nothing was strange here. Luffy often dreamed of talking reindeer and a skeleton saying "Yohohoho."
How had that voice come out earlier?
Luffy scratched his head, his interest coming and going as quickly as it always did.
He was tired today.
He could deal with it tomorrow!
In his drowsy state, he seemed to hear a voice.
[Pirate King Training Plan commencing!]
[Day One!]
[Sea Calendar 1520, May 10th. Sleep time: 1 hour. Please wake up at 1:00 AM for training. Execute 10 sets of 1000 punches each.]
"Huh?"
[4:00 AM — 12:00 PM: Eat breakfast, replenish energy. Conduct physical training and swordsmanship training with crewmate Roronoa Zoro.]
"Zoro does wake up at 4 AM... But what's that got to do with me?"
[12:00 PM — 4:00 PM: Lunch break. Study nautical theory with crewmate Nami. Learn marksmanship and cannon aiming with crewmate Usopp.]
"I'll use those four hours for lunch."
[4:00 PM — 12:00 AM: Develop Devil Fruit abilities, comprehend deeper levels of power. To become the Pirate King, you must utilize your time efficiently every day! To realize your dream, hard work is essential. I will supervise you to ensure completion!]
"That makes sense... But I must be dreaming, right?" Luffy paid it no mind.
He had dreamed of becoming the Pirate King more than once.
Hard training?
Not a chance. Luffy had finally escaped his grandpa's devilish training.
His free and joyful adventure had only just begun!
Besides, only one hour of sleep?
What kind of existence are you, even more devilish than Grandpa?
1:00 AM.
In his dream, Luffy was gnawing on a giant meat drumstick when the familiar voice sounded in his ear again.
[Warning. It is now training time. Please commence immediately. Failure to comply will result in Stage One electric shock punishment: 10,000 volts.]
"Electric shock?"
Even in his dream, Luffy was taken aback, but he ignored it.
Go ahead, shock me. I'm a rubber man who ate the Gum-Gum Fruit.
Chomp.
Luffy took a big bite.
[Warning. Please commence immediately. Otherwise, punishment will escalate: 100,000 volts!]
[Warning. Please commence immediately. Punishment escalating further: 500,000 volts!]
...
In the men's quarters, Zoro was the first to open his eyes. Seeing the flames next to him, his eyes widened in shock, and he almost slashed out with his sword.
Where did this fire kid come from?!
"What's going on?!"
A crackling sound emanated from Luffy's body. Azure blue currents wreathed him, setting his bed ablaze. He didn't feel the electricity at all, but the fire jolted him awake instantly.
"Eh? Aaaah?!!!"
Luffy jumped up instinctively, and then the ship was on fire.
The Going Merry: "Maybe it would have been better if I had just rotted in the shipyard?"
"What are you all doing not sleeping in the middle of the night?"
Nami was woken up and was furious, holding a hand to her ample chest.
She knew how unreliable everyone on this ship was. What kind of trouble were they causing now in the middle of the night?
Then she saw Luffy, who had been herded onto the deck. Usopp and Zoro stood facing him as if confronting a great enemy, their weapons pointed at him like he was a ghost.
What was going on?
Was it another pirate betrayal scenario?
She had originally thought the people on this ship would be different from other pirates.
"Nami."
Luffy put on a pitiful expression and started walking towards Nami.
Wherever he stepped, the deck burst into flames, and azure blue currents occasionally crackled across his body.
Ah!
Nami let out a sharp scream.
Who wouldn't be scared seeing that?
"Don't come any closer!" Nami's voice trembled with a sob.