"Alright, alright… that's enough fooling around. Time to get to business!"
After messing around for a while
—and taking every chance he could to flirt—
Luffy finally wrapped an arm around the fuming Nami.
"Come on, let me show you something interesting…"
The moment he finished speaking, Luffy bent his legs, compressed like springs—
—and vanished.
To Nami's utter disbelief, the world around them seemed to freeze for a split second. Everything slowed as though time itself had stopped.
"Teleportation?!"
Not even a full second passed.
By the time Nami blinked, the scenery had already changed. The two of them were suspended high in the air above a Marine base building.
"Nami, we're here."
Luffy grinned brightly at the woman clinging tightly to his chest.
To be honest, the women in this world had figures that defied all logic. Luffy couldn't even imagine what Nami would look like two years from now.
If he compared her growth to a deck of cards, she'd probably end up around… pair of Jacks?
Before setting out, Luffy had used the memories from his previous life to fully study the Navy's Six Powers.
With his special ability—Heaven-Defying Comprehension—he effortlessly mastered advanced techniques like Rokuougan and Life Return.
He even developed combat skills surpassing the Six Powers themselves, granting him physical prowess far beyond CP9.
In truth, he was more terrifying than the future Rob Lucci, starting out with perfect mastery and unlimited potential for growth.
With teleportation combined with Moonwalk, he could instantly leap hundreds of meters and suspend himself midair without limit.
"H-Huh? We're in the sky?"
Nami finally snapped out of it, eyes widening as she looked around.
She was completely stunned.
"What… how is this even possible?"
But as she took in the reality of it, she could only gape.
The two of them were indeed floating nearly a hundred meters above the Marine base.
Her heart trembled.
What kind of terrifying strength did this mysterious man have?
Below them, the wide training yard lay empty—
except for one man.
Tied to a giant wooden cross stood a green-haired swordsman, drenched in blood under the scorching sun.
Found him.
Toolman No.1: Roronoa Zoro.
Truthfully, Luffy originally planned to only recruit female crewmates.
But then he remembered the original story and realized—
he still needed reliable fighters!
He couldn't send his girlfriends into every battle, could he?
So after reconsidering, he decided to rebuild the Straw Hats—
but conveniently place them on different ships for his own benefit.
At this moment—
As if sensing something, Zoro suddenly looked up, eyes widening like saucers.
"That guy…"
Whoosh!
In the instant Zoro's pupils shrank in shock,
Luffy stepped lightly off the air—
—and with a flash, teleported straight before Zoro while holding Nami.
"So fast!"
Zoro's voice trembled. The aura coming from this man was overwhelming.
"Hey. Who are you?"
Luffy remained calm.
"My name is Monkey D. Luffy… I'll untie you, so become my crewmate."
"Wha—? What did you say?!"
"I'm looking for people to sail with me."
"I refuse!" Zoro snapped. "You want me to become a criminal on purpose? Forget it!"
"What's so wrong about becoming a pirate?" Luffy countered.
"Pirates are scum. Why would I ever—!" Zoro barked.
"I just need to hold out ten days, and I'll keep my promise with that pointy-chinned bastard!"
This stubborn green-haired blockhead didn't bother Luffy at all.
He folded his arms and turned aside.
"Doesn't matter what you think. I've already decided you're joining me.
Nami, introduce yourself."
"Hey! Don't decide for me!!"
Zoro roared, furious.
Nami shot Luffy an annoyed look, but seeing his playful smile, she could only sigh and step forward.
With a bright smile, she said,
"Nice to meet you. I'm Nami, the navigator of the ship."
"Hey!! I never said I'd join you!!"
Zoro was about ready to explode.
But Luffy didn't give him a chance to argue.
"No point worrying about it. Before coming here, I checked everything. That captain's son plans to execute you tomorrow."
Zoro's eyes widened.
"What?!"
"Helmeppo never intended to keep the deal," Luffy said. "I'm going to kill him in a bit."
He paused, then added casually,
"And after that, I'll take your swords. If you want them back, you'll have to become my crewmate. Hahaha!"
"You bastard—!"
Even Nami couldn't help laughing at that one.
Sometimes Luffy acted like a carefree idiot, but when it counted…
his brain worked terrifyingly well.
To a fan of the original story, Luffy knew Zoro's weakness perfectly.
Among Zoro's three swords was one belonging to Kuina—
a memory more important to him than life itself.
And indeed—
Zoro froze in shock.
"Damn you!! That's dirty!!"
But even angry, Zoro couldn't bring himself to truly hate Luffy.
The guy was annoyingly likable.
"Hahahaha! And what do we have here?"
At that moment—
A blond kid with a ridiculous center-part haircut and a fork-shaped chin swaggered into the yard with a group of Marines behind him.
He strutted forward with an obnoxious smirk.
"Well, well… never thought someone would dare trespass into a Marine base.
You must all be accomplices of that pirate hunter!"
He sneered, utterly full of himself.
…
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T/N:
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