Chapter 141: Returning to the Ship — The Straw Hat Fleet
"Alright! Now the only ones missing are Itachi and Tra-guy!"
Luffy perched on the bow of the massive warship, his grin stretching from ear to ear as he waved at the crowd that had gathered on the shoreline. The people of Dressrosa—the citizens who had been toys, the gladiators who had been slaves, the ordinary men and women whose lives had been returned to them—had come to see their saviors off. Some waved. Some wept. Some simply stood in silence, watching the pirates who had changed everything.
The sea breeze ruffled Luffy's hair. He squinted against the wind, and in the distance, he could make out Fujitora's purple-clad figure passing slowly through the crowd, his staff-sword tapping against the broken stone.
"That uncle... he really isn't our enemy after all, is he?"
"Hehehe."
Zoro stepped up beside him, arms crossed. "Looks like the danger's passed. With this many people covering our escape, we can afford to wait for Law and Itachi a little longer."
Behind them, the Yonta Maria's deck was a riot of activity. Bartolomeo was circling Orlumbus with the intensity of a particularly devoted mosquito, bombarding the admiral with questions about the massive warship's specifications. "Five thousand crew capacity?! What kind of wood is the hull?! How many cannons?! Can I touch the helm?! Just once?!" Other pirates had gathered in clusters, exchanging stories of the battle, comparing wounds, marveling at the fact that they were still alive.
Franky and Usopp leaned against the port railing, waving goodbye to the figures on shore.
Then Luffy's arm shot out.
"HEY! TRA-GUY!"
The rubber limb stretched across the distance between ship and shore, past the crowd, past the rubble, all the way to where Trafalgar Law had just raised his hand to create a ROOM force field.
Law saw the approaching arm with the resigned expression of a man who had experienced this exact scenario far too many times. He had time for exactly one thought—Protect the hat—before the rubber hand closed around his collar.
WHOOSH.
Luffy yanked. Law flew. The trajectory was slightly miscalibrated, and instead of landing gracefully on the deck, Law's lower body crashed directly into Usopp's upturned face.
"I knew it," Law muttered, extracting himself from the tangle of limbs. Usopp's nose had broken his fall. Mostly. "Every single time."
"Sorry, Usopp! I was a little off!" Luffy scratched the back of his head with his trademark clueless grin.
"A LITTLE OFF?!" Usopp scrambled to his feet, his nose bent at a fresh angle. "You missed by like thirty meters! I think you did that on PURPOSE!"
"You're so annoying, Usopp!"
"YOU'RE annoying!"
Luffy's jaw unhinged and engulfed Usopp's entire head.
"Mmph mmph MMPH!"
Law dusted off his coat and surveyed the deck. "Where's Itachi-ya?"
"Still talking with the Revolutionary Army, probably," Zoro said. He glanced at Luffy—who was now walking around with Usopp's head still in his mouth—and added: "Speaking of which. Luffy. Aren't you curious about your father?"
Luffy's eyes swiveled toward Zoro. Usopp's legs kicked uselessly.
"Mmph mphu mphu?" (My dad?)
"Mmph mphmph mph mphmph." (I dunno, something about meeting him.)
Zoro and Law exchanged glances.
"Could you understand any of that?"
"Not a word."
"The idiot slept through the whole thing," Zoro said. "If he'd been awake, he could have gone to see his old man in person."
"Probably for the best. Knowing Straw Hat-ya, he would have challenged Dragon to a fight within the first five minutes." Law produced a small, folded note from his coat—the message Itachi had sent via the genjutsu-controlled bird. "Itachi-ya estimated he'd return within the hour. If we're assembled before then, we can set sail first. He'll catch up."
Zoro's eye drifted toward the southern horizon. A dark speck was growing larger against the clouds. "No need to wait."
"What?"
The Black Fire Crow descended from the sky in a controlled spiral, its dark flames scattering embers across the afternoon light. Itachi guided the construct to a gentle landing on the warship's deck, Robin's hand clasped in his as they stepped down together.
"SENIOR UCHIHA ITACHI!!!" Bartolomeo abandoned his interrogation of Orlumbus mid-sentence and sprinted across the deck, tears already streaming. "YOU'RE BACK! YOU'RE SAFE! I WAS SO WORRIED!"
"Itachilando!"
Two tiny blurs launched themselves from the rigging. Lan Lan and Kaka hit Itachi's chest simultaneously, their tiny arms wrapping around his neck with the full force of Tontatta enthusiasm. Leo followed at a more dignified pace, though his eyes were no less bright.
"You made it back!"
"We waited and waited! I was so sad thinking you might not come!"
Itachi gently patted both Tontatta on their tiny heads.
Luffy finally released Usopp—whose face was now covered in saliva and righteous indignation—and bounded over. "Itachi! You're back!"
"Yeah." Itachi's eyes swept across the assembled crew. Luffy's grin. Zoro's quiet nod. Usopp's snot-covered scowl. Franky's thumbs-up. Robin's warm smile. "I'm back."
Orlumbus's voice boomed across the deck: "Are we ready to set sail?!"
Luffy's fist shot into the air. "LET'S GO!"
The cheer that erupted from the assembled pirates shook the ship's timbers. Orlumbus bellowed orders. Sails unfurled. Anchors weighed. And the Yonta Maria—flagship of a fleet that had not yet been named—turned its prow toward the open sea.
The warship had barely cleared the harbor when the explanations began. Itachi listened with his usual quiet intensity as the pirates—his temporary allies, his unexpected comrades—laid out their stories. How they had been saved. Why they had gathered. What they intended to do next.
It had all started with Usopp.
When Sugar had been frightened into unconsciousness—when the Hobi-Hobi Fruit's curse had shattered and every toy in Dressrosa had returned to human form—the warriors freed from bondage had looked upon the bloodied, trembling sniper who had saved them and seen something divine. They had seen God Usopp. And though Usopp had protested, panicked, and tried desperately to explain that it was all an accident, the impression had stuck.
These pirates, gladiators, and warriors from every corner of the sea had been given a second chance at life. They intended to use it.
The giant Hajrudin stood before Luffy, his massive frame blocking out the sun. "Straw Hat. Besides myself, I have four other giant warriors who fight at my side. We intend to form a new Giant Warrior Pirates—a crew that will revive the legendary name that once shook the world!"
Luffy's eyes sparkled. "Giant Warrior Pirates?!"
Usopp grabbed Luffy's arm, his earlier indignation forgotten. "Luffy! That's the crew Dorry and Brogy belonged to! The giants we met on Little Garden!"
Images flooded Usopp's mind—two giants locked in endless combat, a duel that had spanned decades, a volcano erupting in the background. The goldfish that could swallow islands. The combined attack that had split the sky.
"That sounds amazing!" Luffy adjusted the straw hat on his head. "If we fight someday, we'll be rivals. Shishishi!"
"And I want to visit Elbaf someday," Usopp added, his eyes shining with genuine longing. "The home of the giants."
"Elbaf?" Itachi turned to Usopp, his expression curious. The name stirred something in his memory—a fragment from the visions the crooked old man had shown him. "What is that place?"
"Oh, right! Big Brother Itachi doesn't know yet!" Usopp puffed out his chest, his natural storytelling instincts taking over. "Elbaf is the legendary island where all giants come from! It's said to be the greatest warrior nation in the world!"
Nearby, Orlumbus had cornered Law and Robin with the air of a man making a business proposition. "Our Yonta Maria Grand Fleet consists of fifty-six vessels. If the need ever arises... I believe we could be of significant assistance."
"Assistance?" Robin's eyebrow arched.
At that moment, Leo approached with Lan Lan and Kaka in tow. The tiny squad captain cleared his throat with as much dignity as a creature the size of a thumb could muster. "Itachilando! Luffylando! The Tontatta Kingdom's council has given us permission. We wish to join!"
"Join?" Itachi tilted his head.
Cavendish shoved his way forward, his golden hair practically glowing with indignation. "If anyone's joining, it's going to be ME! I refuse to let my popularity be overshadowed by ANY of you! Especially not you, Straw Hat!"
Sai of the Happo Navy stepped up beside him. "The Happo Navy owes the Straw Hats a debt we can never fully repay. Wherever this fleet goes, we go with it."
"WHAT ARE YOU ALL TALKING ABOUT?!"
Every head turned toward Luffy. The Straw Hat captain stood in the center of the deck, his arms crossed, his face scrunched up in genuine confusion. He had been listening to the conversation with the expression of a man trying to solve a puzzle that was missing half its pieces.
"We're talking about forming a fleet, Straw Hat!" Hajrudin boomed. "A grand alliance of pirates under your flag!"
"A fleet?" Luffy tilted his head so far it nearly touched his shoulder. "Why would I want a fleet?"
"BECAUSE YOU'RE GOING TO BE THE PIRATE KING!" Bartolomeo screamed, tears streaming down his face. "AND THE PIRATE KING NEEDS A FLEET!"
"But I don't want a fleet."
The deck went silent.
"What... what do you mean you don't want a fleet?" Cavendish's voice was strangled.
"I don't want to command anyone." Luffy's voice was simple. Direct. Utterly without pretense. "I want to be free. And I want my crew to be free. If I had a fleet, I'd have to tell people what to do. That's not being free. That's being a boss."
He grinned.
"But if we're friends... and if you want to help us... and if we want to help you... that's different. That's not a fleet. That's just what friends do."
The pirates stared at him.
"Then..." Hajrudin's voice was uncertain. "What do we call ourselves?"
Luffy thought about this for approximately half a second. "I dunno. Whatever you want."
"We need a name!" Orlumbus insisted. "A name that will echo through the ages!"
"How about the Straw Hat Grand Fleet?!" someone shouted.
"No, that sounds like we're subordinates!"
"What about the Straw Hat Alliance?"
"Too formal!"
While the debate raged, Itachi leaned against the railing with Robin beside him. Lan Lan and Kaka had fallen asleep in his cloak, their tiny bodies rising and falling with each breath.
"You're smiling," Robin observed.
"Am I?"
"Just a little. At the corner of your mouth."
Itachi looked at the arguing pirates. At Hajrudin gesturing emphatically. At Cavendish flipping his hair. At Bartolomeo weeping. At Usopp trying desperately to explain that he was NOT a god, please stop calling him that, he was just a guy who got lucky. At Luffy, the center of the storm, completely oblivious to the fact that he had just accidentally founded an armada.
"It seems our captain has a talent for drawing people to him," Itachi said quietly.
"He always has." Robin's voice was warm. "Even when he doesn't mean to. Even when he doesn't want to. People see something in him. Something they want to believe in."
"Yes." Itachi watched Luffy laugh at something Usopp said. "I understand that now."
(End of Chapter)
✨ If you're enjoying this story, please consider supporting me on Patreon:
Patreon.com/TofuChan
Get Access to Bonus Chapters