The first thing I registered was the smell.
It was an overpowering concoction of salt, tar, and something vaguely metallic, like old blood. My nose wrinkled. The last thing I remembered was the sterile, book-and-ozone scent of the university library, the low hum of the air conditioning a familiar companion as I crammed for my midterms. This was the polar opposite.
The second sensation was movement. A gentle, rhythmic rocking that sent a wave of nausea through my stomach. It was the lurching sway of a boat on a calm sea. My eyes snapped open.
Splintered wooden planks filled my vision, rough and weathered. I was lying on my side, my cheek pressed against the deck of a ship. Panic, cold and sharp, lanced through me. I shot up into a sitting position, my head swimming for a moment.
All around me was chaos. Or, rather, the terrified aftermath of chaos. Well-dressed men and women, clearly passengers, were huddled together, crying and trembling. Looming over them were… pirates. There was no other word for them. They were a motley crew of brutes with ugly mugs, missing teeth, and a frightening collection of stained cutlasses and flintlock pistols. Their laughter was a low, guttural sound that grated on my nerves.
My mind raced, trying to connect the dots. Library. Headache. A flash of blinding white light. And now… this. Kidnapped? Drugged? It made no sense. I looked down at myself. I was still in my jeans and hoodie, the same clothes I'd been wearing hours—or was it days?—ago. But something was different.
A profound sense of clarity washed over me, dispelling the panic. My thoughts, usually a jumbled mess of deadlines and anxieties, were suddenly sharp, ordered, and moving at an incredible speed. My body felt… light. The chronic ache in my lower back from too many hours spent hunched over a desk was gone. The slight astigmatism that blurred my right eye had vanished; the world was crisper, more vibrant than I had ever seen it.
Deep within me, I felt a subtle but fundamental shift, like a lock I never knew existed had just been shattered. It was a feeling of release, of infinite, untapped potential suddenly made accessible. A quiet hum of power resonated through my very being.
Essence of the Broken Limiter.
The words appeared in my mind, not as a thought, but as an innate truth, a piece of knowledge as fundamental as my own name. My limits—physical, mental, spiritual—were gone. I could feel it. The potential for growth was a vast, endless ocean inside me.
A sharp cry pulled me from my internal revelation. One of the pirates, a fat man with a bandana and a cruel sneer, had grabbed a young boy by his pink hair. The boy was small, round-faced, and wore glasses that seemed too big for his face. He was shaking like a leaf.
My blood ran cold. I knew that hair. I knew those glasses.
"Get this barrel to the storeroom, you useless cabin boy!" the pirate roared, shoving the boy towards a large, wooden barrel that some of his mates had just fished out of the sea.
"Y-Yes, sir!" the boy squeaked, stumbling forward.
Coby. That was Coby. And if that was Coby, then this ship… this raid… That barrel…
My heart hammered against my ribs, a frantic rhythm of disbelief and dawning, terrifying excitement. This wasn't just any pirate raid. This was the pirate raid. The one where it all began. I was in the world of One Piece.
"Hey, you two! Roll it over here!" another pirate barked at Coby and a lanky, nervous-looking crewmate.
They struggled to roll the heavy barrel across the deck. It was clearly waterlogged and weighed a ton.
"Probably full of booze," one of them grunted, licking his lips. "Let's crack it open now! The Captain won't mind a little taste."
"Don't be an idiot! Lady Alvida will have our hides if we drink her spoils!" another argued.
My eyes were glued to the barrel. I knew who was inside. And I knew what was about to happen. This was my chance. I couldn't just be a bystander. The prompt, the reason I was here, was to join.
Coby tripped over a coil of rope, falling flat on his face. The fat pirate who had yelled at him earlier stalked over, raising a booted foot to kick the boy.
"Useless little runt!"
Without a second thought, I was moving. My body felt unnaturally fluid, faster than I'd ever moved in my life. I covered the ten feet between us in an instant, my hand shooting out and wrapping around the pirate's thick ankle just as he began his kick.
My grip was like steel.
The pirate froze, his eyes widening in surprise. He tried to yank his leg free, but it was like pulling against a mountain. He stared at me, his brutish face contorting in a mixture of anger and confusion. "Who the hell are you?"
I didn't answer. I just squeezed. A pained grunt escaped his lips, and he lost his balance, hopping on one foot. I gave his ankle a sharp tug, and he went down with a heavy thud, his head cracking against the deck. He was out cold.
The other pirates stared, their jaws hanging open. Coby looked up at me from the floor, his eyes wide with terror and a sliver of awe.
"Just leave him alone," I said, my voice steady, surprising even myself. The low hum of power inside me felt warm, reassuring. I could feel every muscle in my body, every beat of my heart, and I could control it all with perfect precision.
"Why you little—!" one of the pirates snarled, drawing his cutlass.
Before he could take a step, the lid of the barrel beside us exploded outwards.
KA-BOOM!
Wood splinters flew everywhere. A figure shot out of the shattered remains, a young man with a straw hat, a red vest, and an impossibly wide, carefree grin. He stretched his arms high above his head, letting out a massive yawn.
"WHAT A GREAT NAP!" he bellowed, his voice echoing across the deck. He blinked, looking around at the shocked faces of the pirates, Coby's terrified expression, and my own stunned silence.
"Huh? Who are you guys?" he asked, scratching his head.
It was him. Monkey D. Luffy. In the flesh. He looked exactly like he did in the anime, but more… real. More vibrant. The sheer force of his presence was overwhelming.
The pirates recovered from their shock, fury replacing confusion.
"Who are you?! What were you doing in that barrel?!" one demanded, pointing a shaky sword at him.
Luffy's stomach let out a monstrous growl. "Man, I'm starving. You guys got any food?"
The sheer absurdity of the situation seemed to break the pirates' brains. They charged him, a wave of angry, ugly men brandishing weapons.
"Doesn't matter! Get him!"
Luffy just stood there, looking completely unconcerned. A pirate swung his iron club down, aiming to split Luffy's head open.
Luffy didn't even flinch. He just tilted his head. The iron club bounced off his forehead with a dull thwack, as if it had hit rubber.
The pirate stared at his now-bent sword in disbelief.
Luffy rubbed his head. "Ouch."
He then cocked his fist back. His arm stretched, coiling back an impossible distance, past the ship's railing and out over the water. The pirates froze, their eyes bugging out.
"GUM-GUM…"
My own inner monologue was screaming. It's real. It's all real. Devil Fruits are real.
Luffy's fist snapped forward, his arm shooting across the deck like a cannonball.
"PISTOL!"
The fist connected with the lead pirate's face, sending him flying backward into his comrades like a bowling ball hitting pins. The whole group went down in a heap of tangled limbs and groans of pain.
Silence descended upon the deck, broken only by the gentle lapping of waves against the hull. The remaining passengers and pirates stared, utterly dumbfounded. Coby's jaw was on the floor.
I just let out a slow breath I didn't realize I was holding. Seeing it on a screen was one thing. Witnessing it firsthand, feeling the rush of wind as his fist flew by, was something else entirely.
A loud, grating voice cut through the stunned silence. "What is all this commotion?!"
A shadow fell over the deck. A monstrously large woman stepped out from the captain's quarters. She was huge, wearing a cowboy hat and a pink checkered coat, and she was carrying a massive, spiked iron mace over her shoulder. Her face was caked in makeup, a stark red heart painted on her left cheek.
Iron Mace Alvida.
Her eyes scanned the scene—the defeated pirates, the terrified passengers, me standing over one of her unconscious men, and Luffy, who was busy picking his nose.
"Who," she snarled, her voice dripping with arrogance, "is responsible for this mess?"
Her gaze fell on Coby, who flinched as if struck. "Coby! Who is the most beautiful woman on all the seas?"
Coby trembled, sweat pouring down his face. "W-well… that would be… y-you, Lady Alvida," he stammered out, the practiced lie tasting like ash in his mouth.
Alvida beamed. "Correct!" She then turned her glare on Luffy. "Now, who is this scrawny brat?"
Luffy stopped picking his nose and looked at her, his expression utterly blank. "Who's the big, fat lady?"
The air froze.
Alvida's face turned a shade of purple I had only ever seen in cartoons. A vein pulsed violently on her forehead. "WHAAAAAT DID YOU SAAAAAY?!" she shrieked, her voice cracking with rage.
She hefted her iron mace, the weapon looking impossibly heavy, and swung it with terrifying force right at Luffy's head. Coby screamed. I tensed, ready to move, but I held back. I knew what would happen.
CRUNCH!
The mace connected with Luffy's skull. But instead of crushing it, Luffy's head simply absorbed the blow, indenting like a rubber ball before snapping back into place, sending a shockwave up the mace that made Alvida's hands tremble.
Luffy blinked. "That didn't hurt at all."
Alvida stared, her eyes wide with shock. "What… what are you?!"
"Me?" Luffy grinned, pointing a thumb at his chest. "I ate the Gum-Gum Fruit. I'm a rubber man." He then turned to Coby, his grin widening. "And I'm going to be King of the Pirates!"
Coby looked like he was about to have a heart attack. But then, something in his eyes shifted. A tiny spark of defiance I'd only ever read about. Inspired by Luffy's impossible dream, he found his own voice.
"You're wrong!" Coby yelled at Alvida, pointing a trembling finger. "Alvida, you are the ugliest, fattest hag on this entire ship!"
He then turned to Luffy. "My dream… My dream is to join the Marines! And I'll catch pirates like her!"
Alvida's rage reached its peak. "YOU'RE DEAD, BOTH OF YOU!" She raised her mace for a final, devastating blow.
This time, Luffy was ready. He planted his feet, wound up his fist, and threw a punch that was even faster than the last one.
"GUM-GUM PISTOL!"
His fist slammed squarely into Alvida's gut. The impact was immense. The large woman's eyes bulged, and she was launched off her own ship, soaring through the air like a blimp with a popped seam before disappearing into the distant sea with a tiny splash.
With their captain gone, the remaining pirates scrambled for their longboats, fleeing in terror. The raid was over.
The rescued passengers began to cheer, thanking Luffy profusely. He just laughed his signature, carefree laugh. "Shishishi!"
He then turned his attention to me. His dark, curious eyes met mine. "Hey, you! You were cool back there! You took that guy down without even trying. Who are you?"
I took a breath, my mind racing. This was it. My one and only shot.
"My name is Kai," I said, extending a hand. "I was… just a passenger."
Luffy ignored my hand and just grinned. "I'm Luffy! Nice to meetcha, Kai!" He then looked at Coby, who was still trying to process his own bravery. "You're Coby, right? You wanna be a Marine? That's cool! We should find a Marine base then!"
Coby nodded, tears of gratitude in his eyes. "There's one not too far from here! At Shells Town!"
"Alright! Let's go!" Luffy declared. He looked around the large, ornate passenger ship. "This ship is too big. Let's find a smaller boat!"
We found a small sailboat tied to the side, stocked with a few provisions. As we were lowering it into the water, Coby helping us, Luffy looked at me again, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"So, Kai," he began, "you're pretty strong. What's your dream?"
The question hung in the air. In this world, a dream was everything. It was your identity, your purpose. I couldn't just say 'I want to survive.' I had to aim higher. I looked out at the endless blue horizon, the sea stretching out to meet the sky. The power thrumming within me, the Essence of my Broken Limiter.
"I want to see the whole world," I said, the words feeling more true than anything I'd ever said before. "And I want to become strong enough that I never have to watch helplessly while people I care about are in danger."
Luffy's grin returned, wider than ever. It was a grin of pure, unadulterated approval.
"I like that!" he exclaimed. "That's a good dream! Hey! You don't have a crew, do you?"
My heart skipped a beat. "No."
"Then join mine!" he said it so casually, as if he were asking to share a piece of meat. "I'm putting together a crew to find the One Piece! I need strong people! You're strong!"
I didn't hesitate one bit. I didn't need to think. This was the entire reason I was here(That I can think of). This was the beginning of the greatest adventure in history, and I had a front-row ticket.
"Yeah," I said, a real, genuine smile spreading across my face. "I'll join."
Luffy laughed, slapping me on the back hard enough to make a normal person stumble. I barely budged. "Alright! It's decided! You're my first crewmate! Shishishi!" he declared proudly.
We boarded the small sailboat. Coby took the tiller, and Luffy and I sat opposite each other. As the small vessel pulled away from the passenger ship, carried by a gentle breeze, Luffy raised his fist to the sky.
"ALRIGHT! LET'S GO! TO THE GRAND LINE!"
Coby yelped. "Luffy, the Grand Line is the other way! And we have to go to Shells Town first!"
"Oh, right! Shishishi!"
I leaned back against the mast, the sun warming my face.
The gentle rocking of the boat, the endless blue of the sea and sky, the idiotic future Pirate King and his first temporary friend… it was all real.
It was my life now. I could feel the Essence inside me, a quiet, steady thrum. It was dormant for now, but it was growing, passively strengthening my body and mind with every passing second.
The journey ahead would be filled with unimaginable challenges, and monsters, among men.
And for the first time in my life, I couldn't wait. I was Kai, the first member to join the Straw Hat Pirates. And my adventure had just begun.
Author's Thoughts:
Alright, go easy on me now I just write what is on my mind. I dont even have any plans for this story as of now I will just go with my gut feeling.