Zoro raised his head and clicked his tongue.
"You again? Don't you have anything better to do?"
Luffy looked at him seriously.
"I'll untie you, so become my crewmate!"
"…What?"
Zoro stared at him in disbelief. He was the infamous Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro of the East Blue. Was this guy insane?
"I'm looking for companions to become pirates with me," Luffy explained cheerfully.
Zoro rejected him without hesitation.
He would rather starve to death tied to this post than become some pirate.
Besides, if he had wanted to become a pirate, he would've done it long ago. Why would he need this idiot to invite him?
The reason he went out to sea was simple:
To defeat the Marine swordsman Karl.
To defeat the World's Greatest Swordsman, Dracule Mihawk.
Becoming a bounty hunter was just a way to earn travel money.
Unfortunately, he burned through money too quickly and kept wandering around nearby islands. After nearly a year as a bounty hunter, he still hadn't even left the East Blue.
Damn it all.
"You want me to become a pirate?" Zoro scoffed. "Don't waste your breath. I, Roronoa Zoro, will never willingly associate with criminals like you."
Luffy scratched his head.
"What's wrong with being a pirate?"
"Pirates are scum. Who becomes a pirate for no reason?"
Luffy grinned widely.
"But people already call you the evil bounty hunter anyway!"
Zoro snorted.
"I don't care what others think. I've never done anything I regret. No matter what happens, I'm going to survive… and accomplish what I set out to do!"
His gaze was firm and unwavering.
Luffy nodded seriously.
"Oh, I get it now. But I've already decided—you're joining my crew."
Zoro's face twitched.
This straw-hat idiot clearly had something wrong with his brain.
He didn't seem very smart at all.
"You use swords, right?" Luffy suddenly asked.
Zoro paused, then nodded.
"Yeah. Unfortunately, that idiot son of Colonel Morgan took my swords."
"I can help you get them back," Luffy said with a grin. "But if you want your swords back, you've gotta become my crewmate."
"You—you bastard!"
Before Zoro could finish yelling, Luffy had already dashed off toward the Marine base…
…in the completely wrong direction.
Zoro stared blankly for a moment before roaring:
"Idiot!!! The base is the other way!!!"
Apparently, Zoro could recognize directions perfectly fine when he wasn't the one walking.
Maybe he was cursed—some kind of supernatural affliction that made it impossible for him to reach wherever he personally wanted to go.
An unsolvable curse.
"Gum-Gum Rocket!!!"
Whoosh!
Luffy shot through the air like a cannonball.
Zoro's eyes widened.
"A Devil Fruit user?!"
Shells Town
"Excuse me, is this where that base commander Morgan is stationed?"
The civilian being questioned immediately showed fear in his eyes and hurried away.
Smoker shook his head helplessly.
"I've asked several people already. Same reaction every time. Looks like the reports about Morgan abusing his authority and oppressing civilians are true."
Standing beside him, Karl pointed toward the Marine base in the distance.
"Just look over there. Tsk tsk… A mere branch colonel already has the courage to build a statue of himself. Honestly, I'm jealous. Even I, the Marine Hero, don't have a statue yet."
"Hm?"
Smoker rubbed his chin and looked toward the busy Marines working high above the base.
He snorted coldly.
"Good. The evidence is right in front of us. Let's see how this bastard explains himself."
Without another word, Smoker grabbed Karl and dragged him toward the base at high speed.
Marine Base Rooftop
Morgan watched as his statue was slowly lifted upward.
"Good! Stop there!"
He turned toward the Marines hauling the ropes.
"Listen carefully! When I give the order, raise the statue in one go! Understood?!"
"Yes, sir!"
Nearby, Morgan's idiot son Helmeppo complained with a pitiful expression:
"Dad, when are you gonna avenge me already? That straw-hat brat hit me in the face! Even you've never hit me before!"
Morgan stood with his back turned and said coldly:
"Do you know why I've never hit you before?"
"Huh? Isn't it because, to you, Dad, I'm…"
"That's right."
Morgan suddenly turned and punched Helmeppo square in the face.
"Because you're not worth hitting, you idiot!"
Helmeppo crashed to the ground in tears.
"Don't get the wrong idea! The great one here is your father—ME!"
Then Morgan narrowed his eyes.
"…Looks like a rat snuck into the execution grounds."
Helmeppo quickly added:
"Th-that little girl who brought rice balls to Zoro! I already punished her!"
Morgan snorted.
"Executed her already?"
"N-no… she's just a little kid…"
Morgan looked toward a nearby Marine soldier and barked:
"You! Go into town and execute that little girl immediately!"
The Marine stiffened.
"H-How can we do that?! She's just a child! Even if it's your order, Colonel—"
"Hmph."
Morgan raised his giant axe-arm and smashed the Marine away in one blow.
"Lieutenant!"
Even Helmeppo looked horrified.
"Dad… isn't this too much?!"
Morgan, however, looked proud of himself.
"I became a Marine Colonel through this very strength!"
"Listen carefully! In this world, rank is everything!"
"As the highest commanding officer of this base, that means I am the greatest!"
"Therefore, everything I do is justice! Isn't that right?!"
Under Morgan's tyranny, the Marines had no choice but to shout:
"Yes, sir! You are absolutely right!"
Morgan nodded in satisfaction and looked proudly at his statue.
"We'll deal with that brat later. Right now, the important thing is erecting this symbol of my authority!"
"I will display my greatness at the highest point of this base!"
"Pull harder!"
"Didn't you eat breakfast?!"
The Marines strained desperately against the ropes.
Then—
Two arms silently stretched upward from below.
"Huh? Overshot it!"
Luffy suddenly rocketed into the air and slammed directly into the upper half of Morgan's statue with a double-footed kick.
Maybe the statue's construction quality was terrible.
Or maybe Luffy's arrival was simply the final straw.
Either way—
The massive statue began wobbling violently.
Morgan's eyes widened in horror as the upper half of the statue broke loose completely and crashed downward.
BOOM!!!
Dust exploded everywhere.
Karl immediately let out a sigh of relief and lowered the human shield above his head—Smoker.
"Whew. That was close. It almost hit me."
Smoker: "You son of a—"
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