Steve's POV
We started walking away from a group of cheering Marines when Zoro suddenly collapsed. I figured he was just exhausted from fighting, especially since he hadn't eaten in over a week. Of course, Luffy and Coby started freaking out about the unconscious man on the ground.
"Let's get him somewhere he can rest," I said.
LATER
"I'm full. That was great," Zoro said, patting his stomach.
"You barely lasted nine days," I scoffed. "How did you expect to make it a whole month without food?"
"I don't know if I could even last a day," Luffy added.
"Of course not, since you eat your body weight in food twice a day," I said, rolling my eyes.
Coby was worried about not being able to afford the meal, but Rika's mom told us it was on the house since we had saved the town.
"So, what exactly are your plans?" Zoro asked.
"We're going to the Grand Line!" Luffy exclaimed.
"No, we're not, you moron!" I yelled.
"Why not?" Zoro responded calmly. "If we're going after the One Piece, we need to head there eventually."
"We can't go to the Grand Line with just three people," I explained. "Especially since none of us have any navigational skills."
"He's right, you know," Coby said, agreeing with me.
"Why would you care? It's not like you're coming with us," Zoro said.
Coby then shocked us all by saying, "I know, but I can still worry. You're my friends, after all. I never had friends before. Growing up, I was always picked on, and no one ever stood up for me."
I wasn't too surprised; the boy had clearly become attached to Luffy and me.
"Don't worry, Coby," Luffy said. "We'll always be friends."
"Yeah, Luffy's right, Coby," I added, tapping my chest. "Even if you don't see each other for a long time, you can still be friends. It's what's in here that connects people, not something like distance."
At that, Coby smiled.
"You have bigger things to worry about than us, kid," Zoro started. "Even though you were just a chore boy on a pirate ship, you were still a pirate. If the Marines find out about your past, they'll never let you join."
I could see the devastation on Coby's face. Poor kid. I didn't even think about that.
Just then, the door burst open, and the Marines from the base appeared. The Marine who I assumed had become the new leader addressed us.
"Is it true that you're pirates?"
"Yes, and we just got our first crew member," Luffy answered like it was no big deal.
"I see," the man started. "If that's the case, although we are grateful for you saving our town, since you are pirates and we are Marines, we must ask you to leave."
The townspeople weren't happy with the Marines for forcing their saviors out of town.
"Well, let's go then," I instructed. "We've got Zoro, so our business here is done anyway."
Luffy, Zoro, and I got up to leave, but I heard the Marine start questioning Coby about whether he was with us.
"I'm not with them," Coby answered.
Smart. Just pretend you've never seen us before today.
"Actually, I know what this guy used to do," Luffy interrupted. "He used to be with this fat pirate, Alvida, or something."
What are you doing, you idiot?
"This kid spent two years…" Luffy didn't get any further into his speech before Coby punched him right in the face.
Where did this courage come from?
"You deserve a beating!" Luffy yelled, then punched Coby back.
Oh, now I see.
Luffy then started to lay a beating on his much smaller opponent. When I decided Coby had enough to get the point across, I went to get Luffy.
"That's enough," I said, very seriously. "Back off, you made your point. No reason to turn the kid into a stain on the floor."
"I get it; he's not your friend," the Marine instructed. "So please, just leave."
We started to make our way toward the docks so we could get out of town. All along the way, Zoro harassed some Marines on patrol.
"Please stop picking fights," I sighed.
"That was a good show you put on back there," Zoro remarked.
"I think Coby will become strong one day," Luffy said with a smile.
"Let's get going before we get roped into something else," I said, climbing into our boat.
We began getting the boat ready to sail when I noticed that Coby was on the street behind us, calling out our names.
"Thank you!" Coby yelled. "I'll never forget what you've done for me!"
"Never seen a Marine salute a pirate before," Zoro laughed.
"We'll meet again someday, Coby," Luffy said, waving.
We pushed the boat off the dock and headed off toward our next adventure. I noticed that all the Marines from the base were saluting us with Coby. I watched as they faded out into the horizon.
LATER
It wasn't long after we left the island that Luffy began to complain about being hungry.
"You just ate, suck it up," I told him.
"So where are we headed next?" Zoro asked.
"Don't know," Luffy responded. "Wherever."
"So, neither of you has any navigational skills? You just wander?" Zoro said, looking confused.
"Yes," I told them, getting serious. "This is why we need to recruit a navigator as soon as possible. Without one, we'll be doomed and never make it where we need to go."
"We also need a cook and a musician," Luffy added.
"Let's stay focused on one thing at a time, Luffy. A navigator has to come first if we ever want to get to the Grand Line. Probably a doctor too."
"I don't care where we end up," Zoro said, "as long as we find the man I'm looking for."
EVEN LATER
"Ugh, I'm hungry," both Luffy and Zoro complained.
Again? Am I putting together a crew of competitive eaters or pirates?
I looked up and saw a bird and got an idea. "Look, you two, a bird! Luffy, you think you can catch it?"
"I'll get it, just watch!" he shouted before catapulting off the mast and into the sky.
But for some reason, Luffy was taking an awfully long time to come down.
"HELP! I'M STUCK!" he screamed.
"YOU IDIOT!" I yelled at him as the bird flew away with Luffy in its beak.
"Row faster, Zoro! We have to catch up to that bird. If it drops him in the water, he'll die for sure."
Zoro and I began rowing as fast as we could to try and get to Luffy, but the bird was just too fast. While attempting to reach him, we came across three men treading water in the ocean, asking for help.
"We don't have time to stop," Zoro told them. "You'll have to try and get in on your own."
The three men barely managed to cling to the boat due to the speed we were paddling.
The three new arrivals were very rude. They attempted to hold us up and steal our boat, saying we were in the territory of a pirate named Captain Buggy.
Why does that name sound so familiar? It sounds like a character from a story Dad used to tell.
After Zoro and I dealt with our new friends, I used my whip to "convince" them to row for us as we headed for the nearest island.
"Speed it up, you three," I threatened. "Because of you, I lost track of my friend. Now row faster unless you want me to whip you again."
Hang on, Luffy, I'll be right there…
"Yes, sir," they all said together and began rowing with renewed vigor.
Zoro asked the men why they were drifting like that when we found them, and they said they were tricked by a girl who stole their ship and the treasure they had just obtained.
Sounds like someone we need to keep an eye out for.
They insisted that the girl was capable of predicting the weather, to which Zoro started saying that maybe she should be our navigator.
"Don't know," I responded. "We may never even meet this girl."
I won't deny it, though, having someone who can predict the weather would be useful.
The three new pirates kept going on about this girl and how they were going to turn her over to this Captain Buggy.
"Who is this Buggy?" I asked.
"He's a great pirate who ate one of the Devil Fruits," the one wearing a hat said. "Haven't you ever heard of Buggy the Clown?"
Why can't I shake the fact that I know that name from somewhere?
It wasn't much longer before we arrived at the nearest island where this mysterious Buggy was.
"Let's go, Zoro," I said, laying out our goal. "We have to find Luffy before he gets himself into trouble."
"You worry about him a lot, don't you?" Zoro asked me.
"Well, when you've spent as much time with him as I have, you know what he's capable of," I answered. "I just don't want him to do something that ends up biting us in the ass down the line. Besides, it's my job to worry about him."
With that, Zoro and I entered the town to begin our search for Luffy.