Chapter 1
"Hey, Kirby! Hurry up and roll that barrel over here—we brothers are gonna drink it dry!" a burly pirate with a bushy beard shouted at Coby.
Once Coby pushed the barrel over, the other pirates warned him to keep his mouth shut. Then they prepared to crack it open for a good drink.
Suddenly, the barrel exploded. Two figures emerged from inside. Luffy stretched lazily, laughing loudly. "That was a great nap! Right, Sol?"
Sol punched Luffy square in the face—his entire fist sinking in. "Idiot Luffy! You slept great? I've been starving for two or three days with no food! And why is my huge bag of supplies now just an empty sack?"
Luffy struggled to pry Sol's fist away. With a "pop," he grinned and rubbed his cheek. "Because I was hungry, Sol. I saw food and ate it. Sorry!"
Sol stared at Luffy's carefree expression, speechless. He should have expected it—after knowing this guy for years, Luffy always looked this punchable when stealing his food. Sol's fist hardened instinctively.
At that moment, the pirates demanded to know who they were.
"Aetrias Sol Dragneel," Sol introduced himself.
Luffy declared, "I'm Monkey D. Luffy—the man who will become King of the Pirates!"
"Who was the one yelling about sleeping comfortably?!" Alvida's voice boomed.
The pirates opened their mouths to speak, but a chill ran through them. They dodged aside as a massive iron mace swung in. Sol caught it effortlessly and melted it into a puddle of molten iron in seconds.
"Fire Dragon's Roar!" Sol inhaled deeply and unleashed a powerful blast of dragon flames from his lungs, scorching the enemies in front of him with intense heat.
"Whoa! Awesome as always, Sol—that move is so cool!" Luffy's eyes sparkled in admiration.
Alvida shoved aside a charred pirate blocking her view, sweat pouring down her forehead from the heat. "What the hell is this guy? Why can he breathe fire from his mouth?"
She grabbed a new mace from a nearby rack and swung it at Luffy. "I'll take care of this one first!"
The mace slammed heavily into Luffy's head. Alvida frowned—no familiar sensation of brains splattering everywhere.
Looking down, she saw Luffy grinning as he stretched his arms. "Gum-Gum Rocket!"
The attack sent Alvida flying through the cabin wall and out of the ship.
The remaining pirates, seeing their captain defeated so easily, immediately surrendered. Sol and Luffy took control of the ship. Their first order: prepare food.
As the two devoured everything in sight like a storm, Coby clenched his fists and approached nervously.
"Um... excuse me..."
His voice was barely audible over the chewing.
"Luffy! That's my grilled meat—spit it out!" Sol lunged forward, snatching a steak from Luffy's plate and swallowing it whole, grease shining on his lips.
Luffy's cheeks bulged like a squirrel's, stuffed with food. He could only mumble "Mmmph!" in protest, his wide eyes clearly accusing: How dare you steal my meat?!
Coby tried calling out a few more times, but the food war continued. Finally, he took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and shouted with all his might: "I—I want to become a Marine! To achieve my lifelong dream!!"
The dining hall fell silent for a second.
Sol and Luffy froze, slowly turning their heads—meat still dangling from their mouths—as they stared at Coby.
"...Huh?"
They chugged their drinks, forcing down mouthfuls of food. Sol wiped his mouth casually and raised an eyebrow at Coby.
"If you wanna be a Marine, then go be one. Why yell it here?"
Luffy nodded with a big grin. "Yeah! We're pirates!"
"Eh—?!" Coby's eyes bulged, his jaw nearly hitting the floor. He'd mustered the courage because he thought they were just shipwreck survivors—who drifts at sea in a barrel if they're pirates?
Sol waved lazily at Coby's shocked expression. "Don't act so surprised. We were on a proper ship, but it sank in a storm. We had no choice but to cling to this barrel."
Coby took a deep breath, fists trembling, and finally roared his long-held dream:
"I will become a great Marine! And capture all those evil pirates—that's my life's goal!"
Luffy grinned widely and slammed the deck as he stood. "That's cool! Hey, you guys—" he pointed at the trembling pirates—"get Coby a small boat right now! He's off to become a Marine!"
The pirates scrambled to lower a lifeboat. As Coby climbed in nervously, he heard Sol teasing from behind: "Good luck, future Fleet Admiral! Don't go easy on us next time we meet!"
As the boat drifted away, Sol suddenly turned to the pirates: "By the way, where's the nearest Marine base?"
"Huh? B-But we're pirates!" one stammered, backing up with a forced laugh. "Going straight to a Marine base would be suicide..."
Sol's smile widened, his knuckles cracking. "Oh, we haven't officially 'debuted' yet... How about you all 'sponsor' some startup funds?"
The air froze. Cold sweat beaded on the pirates' foreheads. After three seconds of weighing freedom versus survival, they tearfully turned the ship: "Shelz Town! Branch 153 is there!"
Meanwhile, Coby rowed desperately—only to notice the pirate ship heading the same way. As the black sails passed him, the pirates all turned their heads in unison, pretending to admire the scenery.
Coby: "If I'd known, I would've asked for a ride! Why am I rowing this myself?!"
By evening, Sol and Luffy strolled out of the Marine base. Sol jingled a bulging money bag filled with beri and treasures looted from the ship, smiling satisfied. "Not bad—more than I expected."
Luffy scratched his head, puzzled. "Sol, we're pirates... Cashing in bounties at a Marine base feels kinda weird, doesn't it?"
Sol rolled his eyes and hooked an arm around Luffy's neck. "Idiot! We don't have bounties yet, and no ship of our own. Without startup cash, how are you gonna recruit crewmates? Rely on that dumb face of yours?"
Luffy blinked, then smacked his fist into his palm in realization. "Oh yeah!"
His eyes lit up as he leaned in: "So how much do we have now?"
Sol shook the heavy bag, coins clinking merrily. "Let's see... about six million beri!"
"Woo-hoo!" Luffy jumped three meters high, rubber arms flailing excitedly. "Sol, let's go celebrate with a huge feast!"
Sol laughed and slung an arm over Luffy's shoulder. "Great idea! The Marines mentioned a famous restaurant in Shelz Town..."
As they started walking, both suddenly stopped.
Luffy rubbed his chin: "Wait, Sol..."
Sol: "What?"
Luffy put on a serious face: "Did we forget something important?"
Sol snapped his fingers: "Ah! Got it!"
Luffy: "What? What?"
Sol: "We need to save some money for a proper ship!"
Luffy: "Right! So... feast first, then buy the ship?"
Sol: "Deal!"
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