Attendance please:
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The sun hung like a merciless bronze coin in a vast, empty sky, while the sea stretched out as a flat, drowsy sheet of glass. In the middle of nowhere, Yuji drifted in his small boat, the only sounds being the gentle lap-lap of water against wood and the warm, melancholic chords from his guitar. The strings hummed beneath his fingers, the tune a nostalgic echo of his previous world.
"Life could be a dream… sh-boom…"
His voice, a low baritone, wove through the quiet. It was a lonely sound, swallowed by the vast, blue expanse of the East Blue. He was lost in the rhythm, the boat turning a slow, lazy circle, forgotten. A single curious seagull circled high above, the only witness.
"If I could take you up in Paradise up above…"
His fingerpicking slowed. Something in the water's rhythm had changed—a subtle, contrary tug at the keel. The lazy circle of his boat tightened, becoming purposeful. He stopped mid-chord, the last note dying abruptly. His eyes, previously half-lidded, snapped into focus. The water a hundred yards away was no longer flat. It spiraled, a beautiful, deadly blossom of sapphire and white dragging the ocean down into a hungry throat.
"Oh," Yuji breathed, "A whirlpool."
He leaned over, dug an oar deep into the water, and with a single, powerful twist, he wrenched his little skiff sideways. The boat groaned, skipping out of the gathering vortex's grip like a stone, leaving the whirlpool to swallow nothing but sunlight and salt spray. He watched it churn for a moment, then shouldered his guitar. "Too close for comfort."
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Meanwhile, a few kilometers away, harmony was being shattered. The Ocean Pleasure, a VIP commercial vessel, echoed with screams. The Alvida Pirates swarmed the deck like locusts. At their head stood a mountain of a woman wielding an iron mace the size of a man: Captain 'Iron Mace' Alvida, her 5,000,000 berry bounty a testament to her brutal might.
"Kuh-hahahaha! Faster, you maggots! Strip it clean!" Her voice was like grinding stones.
"AYE AYE, CAPTAIN!" The crew responded eagerly.
Amidst the panicked civilians, a splash of vibrant orange hair moved against the current. A young woman in a high-end dress watched the pirates with an intensity that burned brighter than fear. As a pirate hurried past, weighed down by a chest of silver, she did not cower. Instead, she smirked. Slipping over the rail and onto the pirate ship itself, vanishing into its shadowed belly with the grace of a cat.
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Deep in the commercial ship's storage room. A short, pink-haired boy named Koby strained against a barrel three times his width. His glasses fogged with effort, and his entire body trembled. Despite his efforts, the barrel didn't budge.
"Well, well. Look at the little shrimp trying to lift the ocean."
Three of Alvida's pirates filled the doorway, their laughter cruel and hollow. They circled him like a trio of sharks sensing weakness.
"What's the matter, Koby? Captain's pet not getting enough to eat?" one sneered.
"Maybe the captain keeps him around for… other reasons," another sneered, a nasty grin spreading. "Got a thing for weaklings, does she?"
They all glanced at Koby's terrified, trembling form and dismissed the thought as more trouble than it was worth. However, their eyes lingered on the barrel. It was oddly heavy and sealed tight.
"Rum," the third pirate decided, thumping the lid. "It's gotta be the good stuff."
"Keep this quiet. You know she'll drink it all herself and then blame us for not finding more."
They turned as one to Koby, their smiles devoid of warmth. "You haven't seen anything yet, right, Koby?"
"R-right! I didn't see anything!" Koby squeaked, shrinking back into himself. "Please, just don't—"
CRASH!
The barrel exploded from within. Oak staves shattered outward as a figure punched straight through the lid, sending the three pirates flying into the walls, where they slumped unconscious.
Koby's jaw hung open. Standing amid a pile of splinters and dust was a boy wearing a straw hat and a red vest, blinking and stretching as if he had just woken from a pleasant nap.
"WAAAH! That was a great nap!" the boy declared, scratching his head. "I got so dizzy in there, I thought I was going to barf! Shishishishi!"
He looked at the unconscious pirates, then at Koby, tilting his head. "Yo, why are they sleeping on the floor? They'll catch a cold."
"YOU DID THIS TO THEM!" Koby screamed, his voice cracking.
The straw-hatted boy, Monkey D. Luffy, ignored him, his stomach emitting a cavernous growl that echoed through the small room. "Hey, do you have any meat? I'm starving! I could eat a whole Sea King right now!" He began rummaging, pulling out a barrel of apples and immediately devouring one, core and all.
"Mister, please, you have to go!" Koby hissed, fear cutting through his shock. "This ship is being raided by pirates!"
Luffy stopped mid-crunch. His eyes, previously lazy, sharpened. He adjusted his straw hat, and a grin spread across his face. "Pirates, huh? Well, you know what… I'm a pirate too!" He jabbed a thumb at his chest. "Name's Monkey D. Luffy! The man who's going to be King of the Pirates!"
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Yuji's small boat cut silently through the now-calm water. The Ocean Pleasure and Alvida's hulking pirate ship loomed ahead, the sounds of commotion drifting across the waves. "Right on schedule," he murmured.
With practiced ease, he stood up, shouldered his backpack and guitar, and took two quick steps. On the third, he launched himself. He landed in a silent crouch on the broad wooden rail.
Below him, civilians cowered while burly pirates stood triumphant. Then, with a roar of splintering wood, the deck erupted.
BOOM!
Alvida herself burst through like a tsunami. Moments later, two more figures shot out of the hole: a straw-hatted boy and a pink-haired one, carried like a ragdoll.
Yuji's breath caught in recognition. Luffy. Koby. And Alvida… His eyes swept over the pirate captain's immense, wart-covered form. The artwork in the manga did not do justice to the sheer, visceral horror of her presence. A genuine shiver of revulsion ran down his spine.
Then, suddenly, Koby, pushed beyond all endurance, found a courage he never knew he had. His voice ripped through the air, high and desperate: "YOU'RE THE UGLIEST, MEANEST, FATTEST PIRATE IN ALL THE SEAS!"
A deathly silence fell. The air grew heavy. Alvida's face turned purple. Her mace, whistled as she raised it high, aiming to smash Koby across the deck. Luffy tensed, ready to spring.
But before that, Yuji moved forward.
One moment, he was on the railing. The next, he was behind Alvida, his hand gripping around her massive wrist. The descent of the mace stopped abruptly as if it had struck an invisible wall.
"I think that's enough," Yuji stated, his voice calm.
All heads swiveled. The pirates gaped. Koby's eyes bulged. Luffy's eyes focused instantly, a spark of intense interest igniting within them.
"WHAT?!" Alvida bellowed, twisting to face the pink-haired stranger. "HOW DARE YOU TOUCH—AAAAGH!" Her rage erupted into a shriek of agony as Yuji tightened his grip. A sickening crackle of strained tendons echoed. The colossal mace slipped from her nerveless fingers, crashing onto the deck. The mighty Alvida collapsed onto her knees, whimpering.
Yuji bent down, never releasing his grip, and picked up the weapon. He tested its weight with a few one-handed swings. Each pass tore through the air, creating a miniature gale that whipped the hair and clothes of the nearest pirates.
Alvida, sweating profusely, attempted a coquettish smile. It was a ghastly sight. "M-mister… surely we can talk? A strong man like you could have a place on my ship…"
Yuji looked at her with something resembling pity. "Yeah, sorry, lady. No hard feelings."
In one fluid motion, he lifted the gigantic woman completely off the deck with one hand. He hefted the mace in the other, his stance shifting subtly.
'Thunder Bagua.'
He didn't speak the name, but the technique was evident in the devastating, precise economy of motion. The mace struck her midsection with a concussive, focused thud that expelled all the air from her lungs in a single, shocked "OOF!"
She was launched back like a cannonball that soared over the sea, growing smaller and smaller until she vanished into a distant speck on the horizon, accompanied by a faint, dying echo of her rage.
Yuji blinked, the silence he left behind deafening. He turned to Luffy and Koby, the mace resting on his shoulder. "I didn't overdo it, did I?"
The pirates were terrified. Koby's mind had completely blue-screened. But Luffy?
Luffy threw his head back and laughed—a pure, joyful sound that shattered the tension. "Shishishishi! Nope!"
Yuji's smile then broke through, meeting Luffy's infectious grin.
BOOM!
A cannonball tore through the space between the two ships, showering them with spray. A Marine vessel, sails billowing, was bearing down on them.
"Aaaah! Marines!" Luffy's eyes went wide. He snatched up Koby with one arm and, in a move of inexplicable instinct, grabbed Yuji's wrist with his other, his hand stretching out with rubbery ease. "Gotta go!"
He leapt, dragging his two pink-haired companions with him. They soared over the side, landing in a messy yet perfect heap in the center of Yuji's small boat. Before the Marines could fire again, Luffy was already rowing with frantic, comical speed.
Yuji, laughing, joined him, adding strong, synchronized strokes. Their combined effort sent the small skiff skimming over the waves like a frightened duck. Koby could only cling to the sides, his world a blur of sea, sky, and the sound of two lunatics laughing in defiance of the Navy.
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Half an hour later, the sea was calm once more. The Marine ship was just a dot on the horizon. Exhausted, Luffy flopped onto his back in the boat. "Phew! I thought my adventure was going to end before it even began!" He sat up abruptly, a surge of energy flooding back. His dark eyes locked onto Yuji with blazing curiosity. "Hey, hey! What's your name? You're crazy strong! And is that a guitar? Are you a musician? WOOO! This is my lucky day!"
Yuji held up his hands, laughter still sparkling in his eyes. "Whoa, one thing at a time! Name's Yuji Itadori. Yes, it's a guitar. Yes, I play. Not a professional, but…" He noticed Luffy's expression begin to fall and quickly added, "I know my way around it. I'll play you something."
Luffy shot upright. "Yosh! A pirate song! Play a pirate song!"
"One pirate song, coming right up."
Yuji settled the instrument, his fingers finding the strings by muscle memory. He tapped his foot on the wooden hull, maintaining a steady, marching cadence.
Thum. Thum. Thum. Thum.
His voice began—a rich, storytelling baritone that seemed to draw the very horizon closer.
"There once was a ship that put to sea, and the name of the ship was the Billy o' Tea…"
He sang the sea shanty. Luffy was entranced, swaying to the rhythm, his grin a permanent fixture. Even Koby listened, the terror of the day momentarily forgotten in the timeless allure of the song.
Yuji's fingers danced across the strings, shifting chords seamlessly. The song transformed, growing livelier.
"What will we do with a drunken sailor? Early in the morning!"
Luffy whooped, drumming on the side of the boat. As Yuji's voice rose and fell through the final verses. The last note hung in the salty air, mingling with the sigh of the waves.
For a moment, there was perfect silence. Then Luffy and Koby erupted into applause, with Luffy's cheers loud enough to startle fish in the distance.
Yuji gave a theatrical yet humble bow.
Then Luffy stood up. The boat rocked beneath him. His face was utterly serious, every trace of childish glee replaced by an ironclad certainty that seemed to alter the very atmosphere around them.
"Yosh," he said, the word a declaration. "I've made my decision."
Koby looked up nervously. Yuji simply watched.
Luffy pointed his finger directly at Yuji. "Join my crew."
"W-what?!" Koby squeaked.
Luffy's eyes burned with the conviction. "Join my crew, Yuji! Let's sail together! Let's flip this whole world upside down!"
Koby looked frantically between them, shaking his head and mouthing 'no'.
Yuji leaned back, gazing at the boundless sky, then at the impossible, rubber-bodied boy who dreamed of becoming a Pirate King. A wild excitement stirred in his chest as he met Luffy's unwavering gaze.
"Heh," Yuji said, his grin matching Luffy's own. "Why not? I've got nothing better to do."
The joy that exploded on Luffy's face was brighter than the sun. "YEAH! That's TWO of us now!" He laughed, pure and free. "Just you wait, Yuji! We're gonna be the greatest pirate crew the world's ever seen!"
He planted his feet firmly in the little boat, threw his arms wide, and shouted his promise to the sea, the sky, and the future.
"AND I'M GONNA BE KING OF THE PIRATES!"
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