Chapter - 56
East Blue – Loguetown
“Man, I know that must be some kind of code, but what a strange conversation you guys just had”, Luffy jokes.
“Well, the important thing is that it works”, Sabo says, shrugging as he leads him to Dragon's office.
“You know, I always say the same thing when my girlfriend tells me my recruitment method is stupid,” Luffy says, agreeing with Sabo on this point, it’s the results that matter.
“Wait, did I hear that right? Does my little brother have a girlfriend? Since when?”, Sabo asks, surprised.
“Yeah, it’s been about a week since we started dating. She’s my navigator; I’ll introduce you to her ter”, Luffy replies with a smile.
They continue chatting until they reach the door to Dragon’s office, where Sabo knocks and waits for a response.
“Come in”, an imposing male voice is heard from inside the office.
Upon entering, Luffy finally comes face to face with his father, who left to buy cigarettes and never returned.
As they enter, Dragon pauses what he was doing and looks at them for a few seconds before asking Sabo, “Sabo, did something happen? Is the mission complete? And more importantly, what is my son doing here?”
“Well, funny story, I was on stakeout watching the target when Luffy here suddenly showed up right in front of me, and the moment I looked at his face, I regained my memories and well, he, Ace, the Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, and I are sworn brothers. And at some point in our conversation, he said he needed to talk to you because he had some information that could be of interest to the Revolutionary Army, so I asked Koa to take over my pce while I brought him here”, Sabo expins the situation.
“So, Dad, did you ever manage to find those cigarettes you went to get when I was born?”, Luffy jokes.
“Son, I’m the most wanted man in the world; the government would do anything to capture me. If you had stayed with me or if they knew you were my son, you’d be in constant danger. So when you were born, I asked my father to take care of you, it was safer that way”, Dragon says with a stoic face, hiding the shame and guilt he feels for missing his son’s childhood.
“Shishishishi, you should have seen your face; that emotionless expression you try to keep was full of feelings! Rex, I was just joking. I understand your reasons, and I really don’t mind that you weren’t there. My life was happy, and I know and admire the cause you fight for, which is why I’m here today,” Luffy says with a gentle smile.
“Thank you for understanding”, Dragon says, relieved inside. “Changing the subject, how did you know I’d be here on this isnd?”
“Wow, spy work really is your thing! I was sure I’d find you in Loguetown; I wasn’t as sure about Sabo, but you were a fact. And to expin how I knew, we have to go back three years to when I suddenly woke up with memories from someone of another universe merging with me...”, Luffy then begins to tell them everything that happened from that point.
He then took the opportunity to tell them about what he had in those memories, focusing more on the manga of One Piece. He told them about Imu and the mysteries surrounding the person who sits on the empty throne, shared information about Nika, Joy Boy, and the enigmas surrounding these figures, how the One Piece is at the center of this entire conflict and could ultimately determine the future of the world. He also expined about his Akuma no Mi and what that implies for his future, the possible attack by Bckbeard on Baltigo in the future, and shared some of the theories that people from that other world had formuted.
“That... that’s a lot of information to process”, Dragon says, stunned.
“So, do you believe me?”, Luffy asks, surprised.
“Of course we do. We’re spies; knowing if someone is lying or not is part of the job, and you’ve never been a good liar, Luffy. It’s just... who would’ve thought our world is just a fictional story? It gives a huge existential crisis”, Sabo says, shaken by these revetions.
“Don’t think about it too much. We live in this world, and it’s real. The people are real, the stories are real. You just have to keep in mind that our universe is just one in an infinite sea of universes. The possibilities are endless. Just as someone could have written a story about a version of our world, there could just as easily be someone else writing a story about that person’s world”, Luffy says, calming him down.
“Well, you’ve definitely given us a lot to think about and consider when pnning our next moves”, Dragon says thoughtfully.
“That’s right. If I were you, I’d start looking for a more secret pce as a true base while keeping the base in Baltigo as a decoy. Have you heard of the sky isnds?”, Luffy asks, having an idea.
“Yes, we’ve heard of them, but only as legends”, Dragon says, intrigued.
“So, they’re real. Near Jaya, there’s a Knock Up Stream that happens about five times a month. It’s one of the ways to reach the white sea in the sky. It’s dangerous, but if you’re careful, it’s somewhat better than the other ways. The real problem arises when you have to descend to the blue sea. Getting back to the topic, near where you go up, there’s an isnd called Skypiea. My crew will end up passing through there and after we take down the tyrant who thinks he’s a god, you can use that pce as a base; you’ll just have to coexist with the locals, and I don’t think the isnd’s location is exactly known. The only ones I know who know its location are those who have been part of Gol D. Roger’s crew”, Luffy expins his idea to them.
“It’s a pretty good idea. So we’ll need to make a vivre card for you, so we can find you easily and get there more easily. I’ll give you my number too. Do you have a white Den Den Mushi?”, Dragon asks, already pnning.
“I have a white Den Den Mushi, but my crew and I don’t pn on staying in Skypiea for long. Wouldn’t it be better for someone with a vivre card to come with us? That way, that person can stay there while we continue our journey. How about coming with us, Sabo? We’ll end up finding Ace before we reach Skypiea, and I’ll figure out a way to convince Ace to join us all the way to Jaya because I’m going to fight with Bckbeard there. That should be enough to persuade him to come along and join in on the fight too”, Luffy says, expining his pns.
“What’s the issue between Ace and Bckbeard?”, Sabo asks, curious.
“Teach killed a crewmate on Whitebeard’s ship to steal an Akuma no Mi he wanted, so it’s very likely Ace is hunting him down in this universe, too”, Luffy says, expining why Ace would want to go after Bckbeard.
“Well, that could work. What do you think, Dragon? You’ve got a piece of my vivre card, so”, Sabo says, looking at Dragon, who appears to be thinking it over.
“Hmm, all right, we’ll go with this pn. But it’s better if you wear a mask while you’re with Luffy. We don’t want to get discovered, and we don’t want to cause problems for Luffy’s crew”, Dragon says agreeing with the pn.
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(AN: 1,289 Words)
Chapter - 57
East Blue – Loguetown
"I don't care if Sabo doesn’t wear a mask", Luffy says, arguing with them.
"Still, it’s better if Sabo wears a mask to stay unnoticed and not draw attention", Dragon insists, emphasizing that Sabo should wear a mask while with Luffy's crew.
"Alright, then. I'm gonna take a look at the execution ptform of Gol D. Roger in the square while you get your things ready, Sabo. After that, we’ll set off", Luffy says, letting Sabo know they’ll be leaving soon.
"Leaving already? I thought you guys just got here", Sabo asks, confused.
"Well, we just stopped here to stock up before heading to the Grand Line. I also wanted to talk to my dad and visit the square where Gol D. Roger was executed. We weren’t pnning to stay long anyway, and with the chaos I’m going to cause when I go to the square, we’ll have to leave here pretty quickly", Luffy expins, crifying why they’re leaving so soon.
"Alright then, I’ll gather my things quickly and meet you at the port", Sabo says, shrugging.
"Alright, if I'm not at the port, just look for a guy with a long nose wearing a cowboy hat, that’s Usopp, our sniper. He’ll be loading the Merry, our ship. And if you can’t find him, just look for a ship with a goat figurehead and a Jolly Roger with a skull with crossbones wearing a straw hat", Luffy says, giving him instructions before continuing, "Well, that’s it. I’m heading out now, see you in a bit."
After saying goodbye, Luffy heads toward the city square with the intention of decring his dream to the world.
=Scene Break=
A few minutes earlier, while everyone was busy, Zoro and Nojiko were walking around the city, trying to find a weapons store.
“So, what happened? You went to return the gsses that girl, who beat up those two pirates, dropped, and you came back all weird and grumpy", Nojiko asks, confused by Zoro’s behavior.
“It’s nothing, it’s just that girl looked like someone I knew who passed away”, Zoro says, not wanting to dwell on the topic.
"Oh, sorry for bringing it up. By the way, there’s a weapons shop over there", Nojiko says, pointing to a nearby shop.
"Nah, it’s fine. Let’s see if this shop has what we want", Zoro says, walking right past the store.
“Hey, Zoro, you walked right past the shop, it’s over here”, Nojiko says, calling Zoro’s attention when she realizes he walked right past the store, even though the store was literally right next to him.
“Whoa, the store wasn’t there a minute ago; it just changed pces out of nowhere”, Zoro says before following Nojiko into the shop.
Entering and heading to the counter where the shopkeeper is, Zoro asks, "Hey, old man, I want to buy swords."
“Sure, sure, welcome to my shop, dear customers. Please make yourselves comfortable. We have all kinds of weapons, new swords, old ones, semi-used, war hammers, hatchets, battle axes, shields of all types, spears, staffs, firearms, we have everything. Just choose what fits your profile best,” the shopkeeper says, promoting his store.
"I have one hundred thousand; I need two swords", Zoro says, getting straight to the point.
"One hundred thousand?", the shopkeeper asks to confirm what he just heard.
"That’s right", Zoro confirms.
“One hundred thousand for two swords? So you just want two pieces of sharp metal. I can sell you two for fifty thousand each, what do you think?”, the shopkeeper asks, completely changing his demeanor, now looking at Zoro with some disdain while thinking, ‘Tch, just another broke guy who doesn’t understand anything about swords.’
“That's fine by me,” Zoro says, not caring about the way the shopkeeper was looking at him.
“All right, my turn. I have ten million. Could you show me your axes and shields?”, Nojiko asks, sensing that Zoro might cause some kind of trouble, so she takes the initiative to buy what she wants before something happens.
"Of course! All the axes and shields are over in that corner. Feel free to pick what suits your style, dear customer", the shopkeeper says, his tone changing entirely upon hearing how much money Nojiko has to spend.
As Nojiko heads to the corner of the shop to select an axe and shield, the shopkeeper notices Wado Ichimonji at Zoro’s waist.
“Boy... the... the sword... at... at your waist, can... can I see it?”, the vendor asks, stammering and sweating heavily while thinking, ‘Calm down, this is a golden opportunity; now be as clever as a fox, and this is already in the bag.’
“Sure, why are you stammering?”, Zoro comments, handing Wado to the vendor while looking at him strangely.
"It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it", the shopkeeper says absentmindedly as he unsheathes the sword, breathing heavily as he thinks, 'Oh yeah, this is the one. Look at this beauty.'
“Wow, look at that junk sword”, the salesman comments, putting his pn into action.
"What the hell did you just say?", Zoro asks angrily, grabbing the shopkeeper by the colr and pulling him close.
"Oh, sorry, sorry! I was just joking, it’s not that bad. Listen, I have a proposal for you: I’ll buy this sword from you for two hundred thousand. That way, you’ll have three hundred thousand, enough to buy three decent swords. What do you say?", the shopkeeper asks, believing Zoro knows nothing about swords and will accept the offer.
"It’s not for sale, buddy", Zoro says, not even considering the offer.
"Too low? Then five hundred thousand", the shopkeeper says, raising his offer.
"I already told you, man, it’s not for sale," Zoro says, refusing once again.
"Six hundred fifty thousand, that’s my final offer", the shopkeeper says, still thinking Zoro will sell Wado.
"You’re starting to piss me off. I said it’s not for sale", Zoro says, a vein pulsing in his forehead.
At that moment, the girl who’d dropped her gsses earlier enters the shop, and upon spotting Zoro’s sword, she hurries over to the counter, exciming excitedly, "Wow, could it really be?"
‘Shut up, girl! You’re gonna ruin my deal’, the shopkeeper thinks, gring at her.
"I know her! It's the—" the girl begins, but Zoro interrupts, grabbing his sword from the counter and sheathing it again before strapping it to his waist. "Wado Ichimonji. It's a family heirloom that belonged to a cousin of mine who passed away."
"It’s definitely a beautiful sword", the girl says with a slight smile, adjusting her gsses.
“Great, there goes my deal. If you already knew the value of that sword, why didn’t you say anything? That way, I wouldn’t have wasted my time negotiating with you”, the vendor says, sulking.
Turning to the girl, the shopkeeper tosses a sword to her and says, "You’re here for your Shigure, right? Here you go; it’s already polished."
Catching the sword in mid-air, the girl loses her bance, accidentally knocking down several weapons from a wall, and making them ctter to the ground.
“How can someone who wants to be a swordswoman be so clumsy? Clean up what you knocked over and get out of here”, the vendor says irritably before turning to Zoro and saying, “And you, do you see that barrel over there? It has all the swords that are fifty thousand in the store; grab two and bring them back to the counter.”
‘Why is the old man so angry? I made it clear that I wouldn’t sell it no matter the price,’ Zoro thinks as he moves towards the barrel with swords.
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(AN: 1,269 Words)
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