The fire on the Going Merry was put out. Usopp, with a pained expression, began repairing the ship everywhere he could. As for the culprit, he was exiled to a small, deserted island.
Fortunately, there was a place ahead for Luffy to set foot, otherwise, the Going Merry would have been destroyed not in a battle with the Marines or pirates, but set ablaze by its own captain.
Being dumped on a deserted island in the middle of the night brought back some unpleasant memories for Luffy.
Compared to Zoro, who went right back to sleep, and Usopp, who was working hard to repair the Going Merry, it had to be said that Nami, with her more considerate nature, at least threw him a blanket.
She told him not to come back until he solved his personal electricity problem.
How am I supposed to solve it?
Luffy scratched his head and ears, sitting there in a daze.
First, he confirmed one thing: the voice wasn't an illusion. Because he could see a row of semi-transparent text before his eyes—[Warning. Please commence immediately. Punishment escalating further: 5 Million Volts!]
Was this some kind of Devil Fruit ability?
Luffy crossed his arms over his chest and tilted his head.
Did the Gomu Gomu no Mi have this ability?
No way.
Zap, zap, still zapping!
Go ahead and electrocute me to death if you can.
I'm a rubber man.
Luffy was just being stubborn, plain and simple.
If it told him to eat a hundred meals right now, he'd do it in a minute.
But train? Throw 1000 punches?
Luffy scratched his butt, tilted his head, and went straight to sleep.
Might as well sleep wherever; maybe this is a dream?
He stayed that way until the sun rose the next day.
"Luffy!? How long are you going to sleep? We're about to set sail. If you don't fix your problem, you're getting left behind!" Nami's voice jolted Luffy awake.
Setting sail?
"Gomu Gomu no..."
Swinging his arm out, Luffy realized he was still emitting electricity.
Looking closely, he saw.
[Warning. Please commence immediately. Punishment escalating further: 100 Million Volts!]
"Holy crap."
What did 100 million volts mean?
Luffy didn't know, he just felt a tingling all over his body. Was he going to go 'boom' and explode?
He didn't know if his body would explode, but if his hand touched the Going Merry, it would definitely explode.
He hurriedly pulled his hand back, but accidentally touched a bit of seawater.
Then he saw all the fish in the area turn belly up, their eyes white.
Fish: "You're something else, you're too good for us!"
Luffy's eyes lit up. Wasn't this the all-fish banquet he'd always dreamed of? It would be perfect if they just had a cook.
Zoro and the others would be happy too!
He looked up and saw three pairs of eyes staring straight at him.
Just now, he hadn't only electrocuted the fish; they, also on the sea, hadn't escaped unscathed.
Luffy whistled to cover his embarrassment.
But now, the most urgent matter was to figure out what was happening.
Was it really impossible not to train?
Was it impossible not to throw punches?
Once his bullheadedness kicked in, nothing else mattered.
You want me to train, so I train?
It was just like when Grandpa Garp caught him as a child, going on about making him an elite Marine soldier.
Let whoever wants to be a Marine be one; he was the man who would become the Pirate King!
He would not compromise.
[Warning. Detected that the executor has still not executed the plan. Changing punishment method. Entering Second Stage... Randomizing.]
What did that mean?
Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle. Luffy heard his stomach make a sound.
...
People in this world had tough constitutions.
Some could even fall from ten thousand meters high and still have the strength to yell about why they couldn't die.
Unless it was something like execution by decapitation, or being riddled with bullet holes, or a fatal wound through the chest, it was hard to die.
A little electrocution wasn't enough to even bother Nami.
Usopp was using a net to scoop up the fish.
No one wanted to eat fish all the time, unless there was nothing else to eat.
Nami stared at the sea of fish, lost in thought.
"So much electricity... even Arlong and his crew wouldn't be able to withstand it, right?" Nami muttered.
Thud.
A pair of hands suddenly landed on the railing.
Oh, it's Luffy.
It's Luffy!
Does he want to sink the Going Merry?
Wait.
"The electricity's gone?" Nami looked up.
A figure flew over from the distant island.
Then she saw a ferocious face, streaming with hot tears—the kind that would give you nightmares if you saw it at night.
"Don't come any closer!"
Nami was so scared that tears instantly spurted out. She covered her chest with her hands, trembling all over.
After a series of crackling sounds, Luffy rushed into the ship's cabin.
...
My stomach, my stomach.
Luffy emerged from the bathroom looking utterly drained, as if he had... rewarded himself too many times the previous night.
He'd made it just in time. Although when Garp trained him as a kid, he mostly had to relieve himself outdoors, he was older now, and the ship had like-minded companions!
Now for the good news: the electricity was gone from his body, and he could reboard the ship.
The bad news was that strange punishment.
Could it be that he would spend the rest of his life in the bathroom?
Luffy gritted his teeth.
No!
I won't do it!
[Warning. Complete ten sets of punching training within one hour... and promptly engage in physical training and swordsmanship training with crewmate Roronoa Zoro.]
[Remaining execution time: thirty seconds. Entering Second Stage punishment..... Randomizing.]
Stomach?
No, his stomach felt fine this time.
Luffy suddenly looked down, a peculiar sensation faintly emerging.
Could it be... that?
Ever since he was a child, Garp told him women were like tigers, especially beautiful ones.
Before becoming an outstanding Marine soldier, he must never touch a woman. Even the most terrifying man in the world had fallen because of a woman.
Although his knowledge in that area was limited, he was somewhat familiar with this feeling.
[Attention. Please commence immediately. Punishment countdown: ten, nine...]
"Ah, fine, I'll go, okay?!"
Luffy couldn't stay stubborn any longer. If he kept it up, he'd be the one getting hurt.
He rushed onto the deck and started throwing punches.
"Gomu Gomu no Gatling!"
After finishing the exercise, Luffy looked like death warmed over. A three-hour session compressed into one hour—only those who had experienced it understood the pain.
But gradually, he realized who the culprit was: that pendant!
"Where did it go? I was wearing it last night before bed."
"Wait, why did the pendant turn into a tattoo?!" Luffy looked down and saw the pendant's pattern had appeared on his chest at some point, as if it had fused with his body.
The only way to get rid of this strange punishment was gone.
Was he going to be controlled from now on?
Impossible!
[Warning. Commence the next item immediately. Punishment countdown....]
Luffy shivered all over. Wasn't it a random punishment? Why was it fixed now?
He hurriedly ran to find Zoro.
"Zoro, save me!"
Luffy ran onto the deck where the green-haired man with earrings was lifting a dumbbell.
"What kind of trouble are you causing now?" Zoro looked at Luffy warily. "Don't disturb my training. Go play with Usopp."
Without another word, Luffy snatched Zoro's dumbbell and started training.
There was no time to talk.
It took Zoro a good while to react.
Is our captain sick?
Luffy always pulled some crazy stunts that left Zoro covered in wounds, but this was a first.
Was Luffy the type to train hard?
Don't be ridiculous.
Zoro was utterly confused, his brow furrowed.
Most of the time, Luffy's eyes held a kind of pure foolishness.
Zoro had labeled him as unreliable from their first meeting.
But his brain was usually fine, especially when it came to fighting.
Luffy's body had an instinct engraved in his bones. He picked up the dumbbell and lifted it skillfully, all thanks to the special training from his devilish grandpa.
As for the current situation.
He could only comfort himself.
"This is all necessary to become the Pirate King."
"Since I'm bored anyway, and I've gotten through it before, I'll just treat it as Zoro helping me pass the time."
Luffy thought again.
This is only the first day; it might be a bit strict. Maybe the plan will become more relaxed later?
He grinned, his attitude very positive, and turned to chat with Zoro. "Hahaha, why are you looking at me like that? Let's train together..."
[Warning. No off-topic discussion is permitted during training! Punishment countdown: ten, nine...]
I can't even talk?!
Not exactly.
Luffy tested it. Discussing training-related matters with Zoro didn't trigger the punishment. After all, as a training fanatic, Zoro had his own insights—what to do at what time, practicing swords, arms, strength. When it came to food, he and Luffy had a lot in common: just eat more.
But once he started talking about food, Luffy couldn't stop, enthusiastically telling Zoro what tasted good. This wasn't considered part of training, and he almost got hit with a punishment on the spot.
That would have been social suicide.
He had to be serious!
"Is something wrong with you?"
Zoro had rarely seen Luffy look so serious, except during fights.
But he didn't pay it much mind. Whether captain or crew, they were often idle while sailing.
That's just how pirates were.
Most of the time, the navigator steered the course, and the combatants like Zoro only stepped in when they encountered pirates or Marines.
Zoro simply assumed Luffy was just bored.
...
Luffy was about to collapse.
If every day was like this, was there even a point to living?
What about the adventure he wanted?
"I'm so hungry."
"When can we eat?"
It was finally noon. Luffy lay on the deck, wailing.
"You already ate."
"I ate? Why didn't you call me?!"
Luffy's eyes widened, jolted up by Zoro's words.
Could he not even guarantee three meals a day now?
"I'm not hungry."
Zoro was swinging a heavy dumbbell and looked back. "Nami came to call you earlier. You didn't even acknowledge her."
Luffy jumped up from the deck and charged towards the dining area.
He was suffering from both psychological and physiological pressure.
Because it was lunchtime!
The countdown next to him was urging him on like a death knell. For the first time, Luffy felt that being forced to eat was a painful experience.