Monkey D. Luffy.
Right now, he was officially setting out on his journey across the sea.
He had barely pushed off from shore in his tiny boat when a massive creature suddenly burst out of the ocean—it was the Sea King that once bit off Red-Haired Shanks's arm.
The Lord of the Coast!
Everyone back on shore, including Makino, gasped in shock.
But Luffy? He just laughed like it was nothing. With a grin, he swung his arm back and activated his Gum-Gum Fruit powers.
"Gum-Gum…"
"Pistol!"
His arm stretched far behind him, then snapped forward with explosive speed, like a rubber-powered cannonball—
Boom!!
One solid hit—so powerful even the Sea King couldn't handle it. Dizzy and disoriented, the huge beast toppled with a crash and sank back into the sea.
Everyone was stunned. Only now did they realize—this kid might be young, but his strength was absolutely terrifying.
"Later, guys!"
Luffy gave them one last cheerful wave and rowed out toward the vast open sea.
Makino stood there, watching his figure grow smaller and smaller on the horizon, her heart full of emotions.
"Luffy… Be careful out there…"
Hardly anyone in the world knew that some nobody named Luffy had set out to sea. Even fewer cared.
But this moment—quiet and unnoticed—would one day reshape the entire world.
…
Chiyu had no idea Luffy had sailed early.
And because Chiyu had already cleaned up East Blue, all those famous early adventures? They weren't going to happen.
No Koby.
No Alvida.
Captain Morgan and his son? Already dead. The event where Zoro was captured? Gone.
Luffy might still run into Zoro, sure—but the story was already completely different.
And the fates of Nami, Usopp, Sanji—they'd all been altered.
No Buggy. No Arlong. No Krieg Pirates.
Even if Luffy reached Loguetown, he wouldn't meet Smoker.
At this point, nobody could predict what would happen to Luffy.
Not even Chiyu.
But Chiyu knew the original timeline well.
He had eyes in East Blue keeping tabs on Luffy.
Even after defecting from the Navy, East Blue was still his home turf.
Former subordinates like Sword now ran the Loguetown branch, and many of the new officers who had replaced Morgan and Nezumi were still secretly loyal to Chiyu.
Tracking one kid? Easy.
Naturally, things didn't go smoothly for Luffy.
He was impulsive, alone, and didn't even know how to sail properly. He got lost at sea almost immediately.
By dumb luck, he ran into two low-tier bounty hunters—Johnny and Yosaku.
They were just scraping by catching petty crooks and minor pirates, but after Chiyu's purge, business had dried up.
That day, they spotted Luffy drifting in, hungry and cold, and strolling into a restaurant. He outright said he was a pirate.
Of course, they jumped at the chance and tried to capture him.
They got wrecked.
But just then, a green-haired guy with three swords stepped in.
He introduced himself as a Three-Sword-Style user. He'd overheard everything, and figured he could earn a quick buck turning Luffy in.
Luffy, still starving and weak, was no match—he was easily beaten and tied up.
They planned to hand him over to the Navy… but there was a problem: Luffy didn't have a bounty yet.
They had no choice but to let him go.
Still, Luffy was impressed by Zoro's strength and asked him to join his crew.
Zoro refused.
Before the matter could end, another group of pirates—looking for revenge on Johnny and Yosaku—ambushed them.
Forced into a team-up, the four of them had to fight side-by-side against a horde of enemies.
Zoro couldn't handle it alone.
Luffy begged for food, saying he could fight at full strength if he ate.
Johnny and Yosaku reluctantly gave him their rice balls.
Luffy devoured them—and immediately went beast mode.
He demolished the enemy crew.
After that, the four buried the hatchet and teamed up.
Zoro agreed to become a pirate. Johnny and Yosaku joined too.
Next stop: Syrup Village, home of Usopp.
But this Usopp? He had a new dream—to become a Marine.
He and Luffy's crew clashed immediately.
Usopp obviously couldn't match Luffy or Zoro, but he refused to back down, earning their respect.
He pretended to stall them, then ran off and reported everything to Captain Sword.
When Sword heard that Monkey D. Luffy had shown up, he sent word straight to Chiyu.
That's how Chiyu learned Luffy had left port.
Seeing the Marines mobilize, Luffy's group noped out fast.
Sword arrived too late, but seeing Luffy's strength only strengthened Usopp's resolve.
Usopp said goodbye to Onion, Carrot, and childhood sweetheart Kaya.
He joined Sword's unit and headed back to Loguetown—ready to stop the Straw Hats the next time they showed up.
Luffy's crew eventually reached the Baratie and met Sanji.
Luffy was instantly interested—he wanted Sanji on the crew.
But Sanji hesitated.
Years ago, he'd been terrified by the overwhelming presence of Navy officer UChiyu Chiyu.
Even now, the trauma lingered.
Becoming a pirate would mean going up against someone like that…
And even though Chiyu had left the Navy, his hatred for pirates hadn't changed.
Red-Leg Zeff told him to follow his heart.
Sanji finally made up his mind and joined the Straw Hats.
After confirming that Luffy's crew had formed, Chiyu told Sword and the others to stop them by any means necessary—even kill them.
He wanted to test whether he could eliminate the crew before they became a threat.
It didn't work.
There may have only been three of them, but Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji were way beyond what East Blue Marines could handle.
Sword gave it everything he had… but they still slipped away.
Ashamed, he reported to Navy HQ.
Soon after, the Straw Hats got their first bounties.
And just like that, they crossed Reverse Mountain—and entered the Grand Line.
After hearing Sword's report, Chiyu said nothing—just nodded.
Black Arm Zephyr and the others were shocked that he took this "nobody" so seriously.
Chiyu didn't explain.
Then Zephyr suddenly announced he was leaving.
"Don't get me wrong, Chiyu. I'm not betraying our alliance. But this world's about to change big time—and I need more power to deal with it."
"I'm going to find something…"
"Pyrobloin."
Chiyu knew exactly what that meant.
A rare mineral that could create weapons as powerful as the Ancient Weapons.
In Zephyr's hands, it could wipe out an entire island.
Chiyu didn't stop him.
"Do what you have to do. We're allies—not commander and subordinate."
Zephyr laughed.
"Come on, Chiyu. NEO Marine's gone—only your Uchiha Army remains. That makes you the boss, and I'm just your number two."
"I'll be back once I get the Pyrobloin. If your predictions are right, this world's about to explode—and I want in."
He left with his disciples, Ain and Bins, leaving Shuzo in charge of the troops.
Chiyu sent Law to gather intel from across the world.
…
Half a year passed.
Law finally returned.
"Chiyu-sama… as always, you called it.
Fire Fist Ace has fallen to Blackbeard."
Everyone gathered to hear the full report.
Law sighed. "Ace chased Blackbeard all over the seas to avenge Thatch. But Blackbeard kept slipping away. Along the way, he mastered the Dark-Dark Fruit and recruited a bunch of like-minded scum to form the Blackbeard Pirates."
"Whitebeard sent Jozu and Vista to back Ace, on your advice, but it was too late."
"Ace fought Blackbeard and lost. He was captured and handed over to the Navy."
Chiyu nodded.
Some fates, it seemed, couldn't be changed.
"What did Blackbeard ask for?" he asked.
"There's no Shichibukai now, so no Impel Down plan either," Law explained. "Instead, he asked for three Marine battleships."
That raised everyone's eyebrows.
Smoker frowned. "Three warships? He's planning to cross the Calm Belt?"
Law nodded.
"Most likely. Where he's heading, though—we're not sure. Could be Impel Down… or maybe somewhere else in the Calm Belt."
Chiyu considered.
No, it wouldn't be Impel Down. Security there was tighter than ever after his last stunt.
Could it be… Amazon Lily?
In the original timeline, Blackbeard attacked it later, after becoming a Yonko.
Was the timeline shifting early?
Even if Hancock wasn't the target, three Marine warships were a dream acquisition.
Blackbeard traded Ace for them and came out ahead.
The Navy accepted the deal.
Ace was now in Marine hands.
Hina sighed. "Everything's going just as you predicted…"
Law hesitated.
Chiyu noticed. "What else?"
"It's about… Black Arm Zephyr."
Everyone—former NEO Marine included—tensed up.
Law continued.
"Zephyr found the Pyrobloin, but then ran into an old enemy—Whitebeard Jr."
"They fought. Zephyr used the Pyrobloin and blew him to pieces. He got his revenge."
Shuzo trembled. "Isn't that a win?!"
Law shook his head.
"He got injured. And just then, a Marine fleet ambushed him. Leading them—Admiral Akainu."
The room went dead silent.
Injured and facing Akainu?
That was basically a death sentence.
"Did Akainu kill him?" Chiyu asked.
"No," Law replied.
"He captured Zephyr alive—same as Ace.
They're trying to use him as bait."
Chiyu's eyes narrowed.
"Just like Ace… they want to lure us into a trap."
Law nodded.
The Navy now had both Ace and Zephyr.
They were trying to bait both the Whitebeard Pirates and Chiyu's Feather Army into walking into a no-win scenario.
"What do we do, Chiyu-sama?!" Shuzo shouted.
"We know it's a trap… but we can't just leave Zephyr-sensei behind!"
Everyone turned to Chiyu.
Chiyu's voice was calm—but firm.
"Of course we're going to save him."