"Hata Akira, get up already! Didn't you promise to come fishing with us today? Don't tell me you're trying to slack off again!"
A plump villager pounded furiously on Akira's door, the BANG BANG echoing through the room.
"Damn fatty, stop knocking! You'll smash the door to pieces!"
Akira flung off the blanket and swung his legs to the floor. As he stood, a sigh slipped out. It had been more than half a year since he arrived in this world.
From resistance at first, to his reluctant acceptance now, he still felt lost whenever he thought about the future.
When he had first heard the village children chatter about some Pirate King named Gol D. Roger, he thought he was dreaming, or maybe everyone here was obsessed fans. Otherwise, why would those kids' innocent eyes burn with such adoration, even tinged with a hint of madness, like zealots in worship?
From the fisherman who saved him, Akira learned he had been drifting unconscious at sea. If not for that chance rescue, he would have been swallowed by the waves.
Since then, survival meant learning the ways of the fishermen. Day by day, he sharpened his skills. Half a year later, he was already known in the village as one of the best at catching fish.
Before heading out, many villagers insisted on inviting him along, knowing they would return with bigger hauls if he came.
At first, Akira thought he could just plant vegetables and live peacefully as a farmer. But the soil here was barren. Not even grass would grow. The villagers survived only by the sea.
For six months straight, every meal of his was fish. But he never truly tired of it. The variety around these waters was astonishing. Each meal brought a different kind of fish, each with its own taste and texture.
Back on Earth, he had eaten many fish too, but nothing compared to these. The other day he tried a snowflake fish: even after steaming, its flesh remained icy cold, soft and delicate, no bones at all. In the sweltering summer, eating it was sheer bliss.
What rotten luck. In novels, transmigrated protagonists always gained amazing powers. Why was he stuck as just another ordinary man?
Muttering bitterly to himself, Akira followed the fat man down to the shore.
Along the way, villagers greeted him warmly. Children played their favorite game: Navy versus Pirates.
"Today I get to be Whitebeard, the great pirate! You be the navy ensign chasing me!"
"Idiot, Whitebeard's called the strongest man in the world. No way an ensign could catch him. At least send a navy admiral!"
Hearing this, the fat man beside Akira sighed. "Youth really is a wonderful thing. I used to dream like them, of becoming a great pirate famous across the seas, finding the One Piece, becoming Pirate King. But in the end, I gave up."
Akira eyed him inwardly: Pirate King? With your skills, you'd be lucky not to get wiped out by Buggy before even reaching the Grand Line.
"Do you know why I gave up?" the fat man asked.
"Why?"
His face darkened. "Back then, I set out full of ambition. But before I'd gone far, a giant Sea King flipped my ship. If not for a passing old man saving me, I'd have died right there."
Akira blinked. Right, this was the One Piece world. Sea Kings lurked everywhere. With this guy's level, no need for enemy pirates. A single Sea King was enough to sink him.
"Who saved you? No one in our village could handle a Sea King."
"I don't know. Some strange old man. He said he was swimming between islands and happened to pass by. Honestly, sounded like bragging. Who could swim from one island to the next? But he was strong. Threw a pebble, knocked that Sea King out cold."
Akira froze. Could it be… Silvers Rayleigh?
"That old man… did he have a scar over his right eye?"
"Yeah! How did you know?"
Akira forced a laugh. "Just a guess."
Why would Rayleigh be in the East Blue a year ago? The Pirate King had been executed twenty-two years past, which meant Luffy should already be sailing now. But what was Rayleigh doing here before that? Was this some hidden foreshadowing by Oda?
The thought made Akira's head spin.
"Hey, what are you spacing out for? Time to fish!"
The fat man was already aboard the boat, waving at him. Snapping back, Akira hurried on board. Another busy day at sea began.
Two hours later, the two grinned at their haul: ten baskets filled to the brim. Enough to last.
Just as they turned for home, waves surged, nearly capsizing their small boat.
"Not good. A Sea King!"
The fat man's face drained of color as a massive beast rose from the depths.
Holy crap, that's a real Sea King?
Akira stared at its horse-like snout, lantern-sized eyes, octopus-like body. Compared to their boat, it was twenty times larger, like a towering Ultraman.
"There shouldn't be Sea Kings here. Why is it here?" the fat man stammered.
"Quit asking and row!"
Drenched to the bone by spray, Akira seized the oars and rowed with everything he had. He almost wept thinking of motorboats back on Earth. His arms burned, yet the boat barely moved.
"ROOOAR!"
The Sea King lunged, maw gaping, stinking breath pouring out. Despair crept over him. Was this how he would die?
"Gum-Gum Pistol!"
A loud, spirited voice rang out. Akira's eyes flew open in shock. A rubbery arm stretched overhead and SMASHED the Sea King away.
"That looks tasty."
A boy in a straw hat, scar under his left eye, landed on their boat. He grabbed the bow and slingshot himself toward the fainted beast, eyes sparkling with hunger.
"A monster… his arm stretched!" the fat man shrieked.
"Wow, so many fish! They look delicious."
The straw-hatted boy's gaze fell on the baskets. His drool hit the deck.
"Monkey D. Luffy…"
Akira's heart pounded. Excited, nervous, he could hardly believe it. A character he had only seen in manga and anime now stood before him, alive, grinning, and had just saved his life.
"How do you know my name? Have we met?" Luffy tilted his head. Then he burst into laughter. "Not that it's strange. I'm the man who'll become Pirate King! Hahaha!"
His laughter was infectious, overflowing with natural confidence, nothing forced.
The fat man fainted outright.
Akira sighed. Luffy's hungry eyes lingered on the baskets. After thinking for a moment, Akira offered, "Why don't you come back to the village with us? Let us give you a proper feast to thank you for saving us."
"Really? Great! I'm starving!"
But then Luffy stiffened, ran to the side of the boat, and cried out, "My ship! Where's my ship?"
"Over there. Drifting away already."
Akira pointed at the tiny boat bobbing far off in the distance.
"That's it! That's my ship!"
Luffy shouted to it, "Come back! You're the ship of the future Pirate King!"
Akira rubbed his forehead. This guy really was a single-celled creature.
"This is bad. Without my ship, I can't set out to sea," Luffy muttered, distressed.
"If you don't mind, you can borrow this fishing boat," Akira said with a grin. The thought of the future Pirate King sailing off in his boat was oddly thrilling.
"You're a good man." Luffy beamed. Then he fixed Akira with a bright stare. "So, what do you say? You're a man too, right? Come with me. Let's sail free as pirates across the sea!"