Chapter 3 — First Blood
One week later.
Since the news spread about Straw Hat Luffy becoming the first rising pirate of the year, Shinji Ikari, Koby, and Helmeppo had already endured several days of brutal Marine training.
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That morning.
On a small island, a pirate ship had docked at the port. Thick smoke rose from the nearby village.
There was a high chance pirates had attacked.
"We'll wait here for someone," the adjutant said calmly. "You brats go deal with those minor pirates."
After speaking, he gestured toward a squad of Marines.
Among them were three trainees—Shinji, Koby, and Helmeppo.
As the order was given, Vice Admiral Garp stood quietly on the deck, gazing out at the sea. His coat of justice fluttered in the wind, as if he was waiting for someone important.
"Koby… are we really going?" Helmeppo whispered nervously.
"I heard this pirate crew has more than twenty members. Our team only has ten people."
Both of them grabbed Shinji's shoulders, staring anxiously toward the village.
Shinji remained calm.
"The Marines are trained, well-fed, and well-equipped. These small-time pirates won't be a problem."
He analyzed the situation quietly.
Even he hadn't expected to encounter pirates so soon. After all, this was Garp's battleship.
Anyone reckless enough to attack a village while Garp's ship was nearby either had a death wish—or didn't know who they were dealing with.
Their captain reportedly had a bounty of eight million Berries.
In the East Blue, that already made him a big shot.
"Shinji, Koby, Helmeppo—stay behind us," one of the experienced Marines said. "Keep your weapons ready and stay alert. If something happens, focus on protecting yourselves."
"Got it!"
Koby and Helmeppo nodded quickly.
Only Shinji walked forward with fearless confidence.
Strangely…
As they moved deeper into the village, not a single pirate appeared.
The pirate ship was still docked.
Smoke continued to rise.
Yet both the villagers and the pirates had vanished without a trace.
The surrounding buildings were eerily silent.
Too silent.
Shinji frowned slightly and looked around.
He carried a Marine-issued pistol at his waist and a long knife on his back. With a gun in one hand and the knife ready, he carefully studied the second floor of a nearby building.
"If there's no ambush here, that would be unbelievable."
He stopped walking.
Then quietly slipped into the house.
He didn't know why Garp hadn't personally taken action, or who the vice admiral was waiting for.
But right now, the important thing was simple—
Deal with the pirates here.
He stepped cautiously inside.
The first thing he saw were two elderly villagers lying in pools of blood.
Shinji's eyes darkened with anger.
Both victims had gray hair.
Climbing to the second floor, he noticed a half-open wooden door.
Inside the room—
Three pirates were hiding in the corner with muskets.
From their angle, they had a clear line of sight toward the street.
Koby and the others would walk directly into their ambush.
Fortunately, Shinji had entered the building early.
Otherwise he would have stepped right into their firing range.
His footsteps suddenly sped up.
After days of relentless training, Shinji had grown far stronger. Not only had he learned Iron Body, but his speed and strength had improved dramatically.
BAM!
He slammed his fist straight into the stomach of the first pirate.
The bearded man's evil grin vanished instantly as pain twisted his face.
"Marine!"
The other two pirates reacted immediately.
They had hidden there to shoot from a distance, hoping to ambush the Marines.
At such close range, Shinji's attack had caught them completely off guard.
One pirate raised his musket and fired.
BANG!
"Iron Body!"
At the critical moment, Shinji activated his technique.
The faint aura inside his body spread through his skin and muscles, hardening them to their limit.
The musket roared.
For the first time in his life, Shinji saw the flash of gunfire and smoke from a gunshot.
The speed of the bullet was terrifying.
For a moment, he even wondered—
Could Iron Body really block it?
The bullet struck him directly between the eyebrows.
The impact made his head buzz.
But Shinji could clearly feel every muscle in his body tightening to block the attack.
The pirate with the gold tooth had excellent aim.
At such a short distance, hitting the center of the forehead should have been fatal.
But when the bullet met Shinji's hardened body—
It stopped.
The metal flattened slightly before dropping to the ground.
A faint black scorch mark remained between Shinji's brows.
And a dull ache.
After all, he had only learned Iron Body less than a week ago. His mastery was still shallow.
Still—
It worked.
The gold-toothed pirate stared in disbelief.
"What the hell?!"
"Who blocks bullets at this distance?!"
Before he could say anything else—
Shinji's fist slammed into him.
The intense pain forced the pirate to collapse to his knees.
"You people are pretty ruthless."
Shinji looked around quietly.
At this point, he could already imagine the villagers' fate.
There were only two possibilities.
Either the villagers had been captured by the pirates.
Or…
They had all been slaughtered.
If it was the second possibility—
Shinji wouldn't hesitate to wipe these pirates out.
BANG!BANG!BANG!
Three gunshots echoed.
The glass windows of the small building shattered.
Three bodies were thrown from the second floor.
Moments later—
Shinji jumped down onto the street.
It was the first time he had killed someone.
Perhaps the gunshot earlier had shaken his mind. Perhaps it was the thought of innocent villagers dying.
But when the shots rang out—
He felt strangely calm.
By now, the pirates across the village had already heard the noise.
His attack had forced them to move early.
Chaos erupted instantly.
The Marines had already taken cover behind buildings together with Koby and Helmeppo.
When they saw Shinji standing alone in the street, they hurriedly waved him over.
"Shinji! Find cover quickly!" a mustached Marine shouted.
"It's dangerous out there—we've been ambushed!"
But before he could finish—
He noticed something.
Shinji was standing on top of three corpses.
This kid had taken down three pirates by himself.
The Marines swallowed nervously.
Everything had happened so fast they hadn't even seen it clearly.
Koby trembled beside them.
After all, Luffy usually only knocked people out.
But Shinji…
Shinji killed.
That alone created a terrifying pressure.
"It doesn't hurt that much."
Shinji muttered quietly.
The pain from the bullet had already been absorbed by his Devil Fruit, turning into energy inside his body.
"Ambush?"
He looked toward the rooftops around him.
"I'm not hiding."
At that moment, several pirate heads appeared in nearby houses.
Gunshots rained down.
Shinji slowly raised his head and stared forward.
"If—just if—none of those villagers survived…"
His voice was calm.
"…then I'll kill every last one of them."
He took a deep breath.
"Iron Body!"