The minefields were quite expected - it seemed the little Luffy had planted explosives everywhere he could and made a serious effort to place them where he shouldn't. It was later discovered that they only worked with prior activation. More notable was the fact that the house was surrounded by a dense row of buried bones - apparently the remains of some Sea King. The gate was a huge skull, clearly from a giant snake. Shanks immediately recalled that Luffy had killed a Sea King resembling an eel in the local waters. The bones and skull were likely from that creature. And the boy had bothered to create all this! Or rather, he hadn't minded paying for it. Shanks doubted that the boy could have moved even one bone, let alone built a full fence from them. The mouth, with its razor-sharp teeth, creaked horridly as it opened, sending chills down Shanks's spine. Entering it was extremely unpleasant.
And things got worse.
From the 'toothy gate,' two concrete paths led to the house and behind it. Additionally, 'someone' had taken the trouble to fill the cement with numerous small bones, creating bone arrows before it set. Along the paths were rows of stakes crowned with animal skulls. Everything was done with great care. While the numerous bones might be attributed to the boy's unique sense of humor or an intentional effort to scare off unwanted guests, the cemetery behind the house, with its many well-kept graves, screamed of the owner's abnormality. Instead of photographs, the crosses on all the graves were adorned with wanted posters. To protect the paper from the weather, all the posters were encased in neat glass frames. Among nearly twenty graves were a few empty ones, clearly prepared for future occupants.
Despite the bright sun, the soothing chirping of crickets, and the barely audible rustling of grass in the light breeze, Shanks couldn't shake the feeling that he had fallen into icy water diluted with blood. It seemed as if the very air was seeping with blood and spreading waves of madness. While Shanks had long been convinced of little Luffy's complete abnormality, a personal cemetery, especially one like this, made even someone of his caliber uncomfortable. This was no longer just bloodthirstiness or indifference to death; it was full-blown insanity. No joke.
After the cemetery behind the house, Shanks entered the house itself with obvious trepidation… and was all the more surprised to find a perfectly normal residence. Numerous bookshelves and cabinets, plush carpets on the floor, a fireplace - with a tiger skin beside it and a tiger skull on the mantel - comfortable chairs and sofas, a spacious kitchen, beautiful curtains and drapes on the windows. The house was neatly arranged and almost unnaturally clean. Shanks became interested in the many books, but judging by the titles, Luffy didn't have a single specific interest - it seemed the boy was interested in absolutely everything. There were books on psychology, geography, mathematics, drawing, a multitude of books on animals, weapons, the history of various countries, and even books on child-rearing and what young parents should know. Out of the many collected books, only one shelf seemed appropriate for Luffy's age: it was filled with various comics. A randomly picked issue told the story of a couple of muscular men in white and red kimonos fighting another man in a red military uniform. The drawing was mediocre. After returning the comic to its place, Shanks looked around the room again. If he had first entered the house and seen such a wonderful collection of books, he wouldn't have known what to think. However, after the cemetery in the backyard, Shanks felt almost physically relieved to find something normal in Luffy. He was especially pleased with the comic collection - a perfectly normal hobby for a child. For an adult as well, but that's beside the point.
Shanks' mood lifted even more when he saw a very ordinary board game on a low table next to the sofa. Counting the comics, the board game was the second item he had seen in the house indicating the presence of a child. On the other hand, the game was called 'Dangerous Dungeons' and, as far as Shanks knew, was intended more for adults than children. Along with the game came a rulebook as thick as a brick - by the way, it was also on the table - and in those rules, the devil himself could break a leg. Cards, tokens, figurines, dice, game board, and an almost endless number of game options, including timed play. Another notable fact was that 'Dangerous Dungeons' was extraordinarily popular in the New World. It was unclear why this was, but Shanks had not seen it anywhere else. There was also a book on the table titled 'Game Slang,' which, in comparison to the rulebook lying next to it, looked like a thin pamphlet. It was styled to match the rulebook, leading Shanks to conclude that the 'pamphlet' was part of the game set.
"You won't have the brains to play this game with me, I guarantee!"
While the man was exploring the first floor, Luffy, apparently tired of waiting, decided to… crawl out of the basement.
"Where did you even get this from?"
"Grandpa gave it to me for my birthday, and it's the only time, as far as I remember, that he did something normal. Although, after my fifth birthday, I wasn't expecting a game for my sixth; I was expecting to wake up somewhere in the middle of the North Pole… Anyway, forget that. Why did you come here?"
Tact? Hospitality? Not with little Luffy.
"You weren't in the village, and no one wanted to go to your house, so I decided to satisfy my curiosity… after seeing everything, I started to understand the locals better."
"A couple of corpses and bones, what's there to be afraid of?" the boy snorted contemptuously. "As if they could harm anyone."
"And the mines?"
"The mines won't work until I activate them myself… otherwise, some snot-nosed kid from the village would have blown up by now," Luffy said, completely ignoring the fact that he was only six years old. "Little idiots think that if someone dares to approach my house, they must be the embodiment of bravery," he snorted contemptuously again. "Sometimes I feel like activating the minefields, but then I imagine how many screams I'd have to listen to and I hold back."
Shanks could have said a lot in response, but he remained silent - he saw no point in wasting words.
"The bones near your house belong to the Sea King that once inhabited these waters?" the man decided to change the subject.
"Not just him," Luffy shook his head, starting to gather the board game. "I've got bones from three Sea Kings here."
"Where did you get them?"
"Killed them."
Shanks nodded in understanding - his answer did not surprise him at all. He would have been more surprised if the answer had been different. Waiting for the boy to pack up the game, he suggested they return to the village, where Yasopp immediately decided to check little Luffy's progress with Observation Haki… In short, Yasopp once again took the opportunity to mock the boy with impunity, while Shanks, when it was his turn to 'train' him, preferred to abstain. After seeing Luffy's 'little house,' he was seriously concerned about the potential future consequences. He began to doubt that Luffy would 'forgive and forget' all their training. Makino had tried to warn them about something like this, but at the time, no one paid much attention to her words. And, as the red-haired man now clearly understood, that was a serious mistake.
In light of all this, Shanks involuntarily pondered in which role Luffy was more dangerous - whether as an enemy or as a friend? Speaking of him as an enemy, the little kid, despite all his tricks, did not pose a particular threat - at least, not to him personally and most of his crew. After all, a child is still a child, no matter how outstanding he might be. On the other hand, it was already frightening to imagine what little Luffy might grow into in the future. An intelligent enemy is a hundred times worse than a strong one, and the boy was set to become not only intelligent - he was already no fool - but also extremely strong. And, even worse, he was absolutely ruthless and readily shed blood. Capable of any treachery. In Shanks' view, it was hard to imagine a worse enemy. The problem was that, as a friend, one still had to deal with all of that, only without the opportunity to take deadly revenge. So, it turned out that, as a friend, he was almost as bad as he was as an enemy.
Fortunately for everyone, Luffy was still too small. Unfortunately for everyone, the presence of the Legendary Marine in his life and the encounter with the 'Red-Haired' pirates allowed him to start realizing his hidden potential much earlier than would have otherwise been the case. And Makino wasn't exaggerating when she said that the boy learned new things at an incredible pace. The girl herself probably didn't even realize how quickly he could learn if he put his mind to it. Yasopp's joke soon became everyone's headache. And first and foremost, his own: predicting his movements, Luffy almost shot him when the man let his guard down. A skill that eluded most people throughout their lives was mastered by a six-year-old boy in three months through regular training. And he immediately started demanding more! He was not going to limit himself to just one type of Haki. That's when all the "Red-Haired" pirates understood that the already bloody future, due to their recklessness and carelessness, was set to become even more bloody. The little monster was progressing far faster than they had ever imagined.
"Mastering the basics of Observation Haki in three months at the age of six" Benn shook his head when Luffy proudly displayed his new skill to the "Red-Haired" pirates. "I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes."
The boy awakened Haki when Shanks and his crew were once again off on their business, so upon returning to Fusha Village, they were met with another shock. And a justified one. Despite all their experience, none of the 'Red-Haired' pirates had ever encountered such a case personally. They had heard of it, but to see it in person? And in all known cases, the awakening of Haki at such a young age had been spontaneous, triggered by some extraordinary factors, not through regular training. And, as mentioned before, as soon as he awakened his Observation Haki, Luffy immediately started demanding more:
"Armament Haki… how do you train Armament Haki?" Luffy immediately started grilling Shanks as soon as he and his crew, after disembarking, settled into Makino's bar.
By then, the boy had already assessed the advantages granted by Observation Haki and was eager to master the next type. There was no reason to deny him, nor much point in doing so. After mastering one type of Haki, Luffy would definitely be able to convince Garp to start training him in Armament Haki. The boy had already proven his ability to achieve the impossible, so learning the second type of Haki was a logical step. That's when Benn got involved. Luffy was smart, and Benn was both smart and experienced, so there were no communication problems between them. Benn knew more than anyone else in the crew, was smarter than everyone, and understood various nuances better than anyone - results came quickly. About a year after the 'Red-Haired' pirates first appeared in Fusha Village, the boy had mastered Armament Haki. After Observation Haki, Shanks and his crew took his success as a matter of course, rather than with surprise.
Luffy, predictably, was concerned with something entirely different:
"Conqueror's Haki… how do you train Conqueror's Haki?" he immediately began pestering Shanks as soon as he proved he had mastered both types of Haki.
Benn served as an inexhaustible source of various information for the boy, so he became the one who 'revealed' Shanks with his Conqueror's Haki. As a result, this time, Luffy's thirst for knowledge was directly focused on the captain of the 'Red-Haired' pirates.
"Conqueror's Haki can't be trained," the man lazily replied while sipping his beer. "Conqueror's Haki either exists or it doesn't. And even if you have it, I can't help you until you awaken it yourself… Conqueror's Haki awakens like other types of Haki, usually in battles or in life-threatening situations. I think Benn has already told you all the details about this."
"Then start telling me all the details about Conqueror's Haki," Luffy demanded, unperturbed by Shanks' response. "Later, when I awaken it, I'll know exactly what to do with it."
There wasn't a trace of doubt or insecurity in his voice or words. He spoke as if he was absolutely sure he had Conqueror's Haki… considering his lineage, Shanks held a similar opinion. Thoughtfully scratching his chin, he began to provide Luffy with a wealth of details about Conqueror's Haki. The boy listened intently, hardly blinking - as if he were an entirely different person! When he encountered something interesting, his concentration was enviable, and his interest in Haki was particularly strong.
A few days later, Shanks and his crew set off again, and a month later, upon returning to Fusha Village, they were met with an unusual surprise… or not a surprise? An unusual occurrence, certainly… or rather, an unusual sight? In any case, none of the 'Red-Haired' pirates expected to see little Luffy in such a state.
On that memorable day, Shanks was the first to enter the bar:
"Hello, Makino-chan!" the man greeted the girl bustling behind the bar. "We're back! So, get ready to drink and have fun!"
The pirates who followed their captain immediately echoed his words with approving cheers. Luffy had kept his promise to them, so each arrival of the 'Red-Haired' pirates was at his expense. And even the quality of the drinks didn't decline, which would be entirely expected of a crafty kid. However, none of them felt any guilt about overindulging the little boy - after all, it was Luffy! It would almost be a sin not to overindulge him. The boy, by the way, showed no reaction to Shanks and his crew's arrival in the bar. Luffy sat at the bar, his head tilted back, staring at the ceiling. He didn't even bother to turn to them, as if they were unworthy of his attention or the effort of turning his head. At least, that was Shanks' initial thought, given the boy's excessive arrogance.
"Welcome back!" Makino sent the pirates a cheerful smile, which made the bar seem noticeably brighter. "I'll get you some drinks!" she added, starting to pull out glass mugs from under the bar and arranging them in a row.
"Luffy, I see you've decided to get completely cheeky?" Shanks asked, approaching the seated boy, but the man's words did not match his pleased appearance. "You could at least greet us… HOLY SHIT!!!"