[Chapter Length: 1820 Words.]
Unknown MC POV
Somewhere on sea, EastBlue.
…
…
Monkey D. Luffy woke up abruptly, his eyelids revealing a dark and confined environment. A strange sensation enveloped his body, pressed against the wooden walls of the barrel, while the rhythmic movements of the sea produced a gentle sway in the structure. Cautiously, he rubbed his eyes as if trying to dispel the fog of sleep and comprehend the reality around him, with blurry images in his head.
The barrel, though confined, had become a peculiar capsule that held the first moments of his memory comeback. The darkness that surrounded him was a veil of uncertainty, but as his senses adjusted, Luffy began to discern familiar details. The worn wood under his fingers, the muffled echoes of the ocean around, and the continuous motion of the waves—all indicated that he was in a place that, though initially unknown, carried an iconic atmosphere.
This awakening inside the barrel, once mysterious, became the introduction to the rebirth of a new Monkey D. Luffy in a revamped world. His now perceptive eyes explored the confined space, capturing details that identified it as a unique starting point and reflecting on his situation.
At every moment, Luffy’s awareness gained clarity about his unique situation.
“Where the hell am I? I remember dying…” he murmured to himself, scratching his head in the darkness. It felt like a dream, but as time passed, he became more aware of his situation.
Luffy didn’t have much time to think because soon a flood of memories began to surface inside his head, between a past life and a new life that he had lived in this world before this moment.
…
‘I’ll be more powerful, and I’ll never be caught!’
‘I will be more powerful.’
‘I will be.’
‘No, it will be me.’
‘I!’
‘I!’
‘You kids are so funny, Dahahahahahaha!’ An adult man wearing a straw hat laughed, watching the two children with an amused look.
…
‘Luffy, you are too childish,’ someone commented, expressing a mix of concern and understanding.
‘She’s right, Luffy,’ another added, agreeing with the previous assessment.
‘You girls don’t understand. I’ll be a great pirate and will rule all the seas!’ Luffy asserted, excited and full of confidence.
‘Tsk, I don’t like that dream, Luffy. I want a world where people live happily,’ Uta expressed discontent.
‘It’s a beautiful dream, Uta. I want to bring justice to the world!’
…
‘Uta, I have a bad feeling about this journey…’ Luffy commented, a wrinkle of concern marking his forehead.
‘I’ll be fine, silly. Remember our promise?’ Uta replied, displaying a reassuring smile.
‘That we would stay together? But that was weird; I still don’t understand.’
‘You’ll find out in the future. Fufufufu.’ Uta laughed mysteriously, leaving a suspenseful aura in the air.
…
‘I hate you, Shanks!’ Luffy shouted and ran out with tears in his eyes.
…
‘Shanks… why…?’ The boy cried on the man’s chest.
‘I couldn’t let a boy die, could I?’ Shanks replied, his voice conveying compassion.
‘But… your arm!’ The boy tried to avoid looking where Shanks had lost his arm to save him. Even though he was a good swimmer, he couldn’t go back to the village with that sea monster, but Shanks still saved him.
…
‘I swear, this is my dream. One day, I’ll have a crew that will be the most powerful ever in this world. I will be the strongest pirate and man of all! No one will stop me, whether it’s you or Lucy!’ The boy shouted with his childish voice but seemed quite sincere.
‘Dahahahahahaha. I liked hearing that, Luffy. Let’s make a promise then.’ Shanks said, taking off his hat and putting it on a confused Luffy.
‘You see, this hat is very precious to me. I want you to wear it until the day you become a great pirate, and you have to protect your sister too; she is very special.’ Shanks said with a casual tone, but no one could imagine the weight behind those words.
‘This… your hat, Shanks?’ Luffy and Lucy looked at the man in surprise.
‘Yes, now it’s yours, and it looks great on you. So, promise me.’ Shanks smiled.
‘I… I promise! I will become a great pirate, recognized as the great emperor of the sea. I will protect my sister and one day pass your hat on!’ Luffy shouted with excitement.
‘I’ll be waiting…’ Shanks left after that, leaving behind a promise that would echo through time.
…
‘Buahahahaha. This is the Fist of Love; you will always feel your grandpa’s love! This is to remove any influence that damn redhead has put on you!’ Garp said seriously.
…
‘You spat on my sister, you bastard!’ Luffy saw that and ran to hit the boy.
‘I see you’ve already met; this is Ace, Luffy, and Lucy, and you are siblings from now on.’ Garp crossed his arms.
Luffy was already defeated on the ground since he couldn’t beat a boy three years older than him.
‘Hm?’
‘Brother?’
‘What?’
…
‘With this, we’ll be officially siblings from this moment on!’
‘Yes!’
‘Hahaha. Cool!’
‘Let’s drink!’
‘Shishishishishi, I have more siblings!’
…
In a moment of euphoria and shared dreams:
“I will be the emperor of all seas!” Luffy shouted, his voice full of determination echoing on the beach.
“I will be a powerful marine, and I will capture you, Luffy!” Lucy exclaimed, looking at the horizon with eyes full of determination and pride.
“I want to make my own name in the world!” Ace proclaimed, raising his fist towards the sky, challenging destiny.
‘Freedom at sea and fighting against oppression! That’s what I want!’ Sabo declared, his gaze fixed on the ocean, as if he could see a future free and full of adventures.
…
‘Hmmm… Hmmm…’ Ace was crying in a corner.
‘…’ Luffy let the tears flow silently.
“Luffy… he’s really gone….” Lucy sobbed along with her brother, incessant tears marking the trail of their sadness.
‘Yes, Lucy. Sabo… died…’ Luffy said in tears too, his voice wavering with the pain of loss.
‘Ahhhhh….’ Lucy cried viscerally, as if each tear were an echo of the pain her heart carried.
‘I’m so sorry, sister, I’m so sorry…’ Luffy wrapped Lucy in his arms, letting her cry on his shoulder, while his own tears mixed with hers. It was a shared lament between siblings who had lost someone they loved.
…
‘Ace, good luck!’
‘You can do it, Ace! Master it before I arrive, because I plan to give you a beating!’
‘You can wait, Luffy; you’ll never surpass me!’
‘I will capture you and bring justice!’
‘Good luck trying that, Lucy!’
‘Goodbye, brother!’
‘Goodbye, Ace!’
‘See you in the future, siblings!’
…
‘Lucy, we’ll see each other soon, right?’
‘Yes, brother. I’ll leave earlier, but we’ll meet in the sea!’
‘Good luck, Lucy.’
‘Me too, brother…’ Lucy had strange eyes for Luffy.
‘…’ Luffy remained silent, not knowing how to react to that.
‘About that…’ Lucy commented.
‘Let’s keep that just between us, Lucy; we’ll talk about it in the future, for now, follow your dreams.’ Luffy commented.
‘Yes, brother, and you follow yours; I want to see you soon.’ She said excitedly.
…
‘Goodbye, everyone!’
‘Good luck, Luffy!’
‘Don’t embarrass the village!’
‘Good luck.’
‘Follow your dreams, kid!’
‘We have faith in you!’
‘Goodbye, all; soon you’ll be seeing my picture in the newspaper!’
…
Many images, people, and situations passed through Luffy’s mind at this moment; there were scenes of him in another world too, conflicting at this moment, even creating an existential crisis at this moment.
“This… is my life in this world!” He exclaimed, feeling a slight headache with all those images arising between two lives at once.
Luffy realized that something had changed in himself too. His body was growing and becoming different, stronger and more vibrant. The familiar features of his old self were replaced by a more robust, almost legendary version. He felt a pulsating energy within him, a promise of power and possibilities.
“That’s different…” Luffy reflected, acknowledging the changes in himself. “I’m no longer the same Monkey D. Luffy. I am… something more. Memories from my past life are coming back, and new powers are emerging in this body…”
As he absorbed the situation, the memory of a robotic voice echoed in his mind, reminding him of his mythical and unique post-death encounter with an identity. He gained a chance to be reborn in the fantastic world of One Piece as a character named Monkey D. Luffy.
“So, but I’m an original character, huh?” Luffy pondered, looking at his hands in that darkness. “That explains the changes.” He remembered the stories he knew about the One Piece universe. The lines of destiny were redrawn with his presence in this world; according to that identity, there were changes, and this Luffy is not originally Nika but someone else, and now he had the chance to leave a unique mark in history.
“Let’s think about my benefits now. To start, I received two powerful Devil Fruits, 4 summoning cards as an initial bonus, and a shop system as my safe haven for this world. Now that I have received these powers with my memories, my body is changing, especially the mythical Zoan I acquired!” Luffy seemed satisfied inside the barrel.
“As I am not the original Monkey D. Luffy, there is another character who was born to be the MC of this world. I know him very well with my life in this world so far, and he is not a pirate. Now, with my memories coming back, while I started my journey in the barrel by coincidence, I’m sure this world is about to get even more interesting!” Luffy murmured, feeling a renewed excitement with the expectations of his possibilities in this world.
The first changes in this non-original Luffy are his size; he is 2.1 meters tall with a strong body, despite never having the Hito Hito no Mi or any other Devil Fruit. He trained a lot with his brothers. He now has tattoos across his torso, as it was part of his original personality in his past life and was added to his body as memories returned. His hair is a modern style, with a side undercut, akin to David’s style from Cyberpunk. With the addition of the mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, his muscles grew even larger at this moment, making his current clothes tight on him. His eyes turned red as a consequence of the fruit’s power, and he had changed quite a bit. If the potential of the Monkey D. family was already great, the addition of his current fruit made him explode with possibilities; his body was now far beyond the understanding of ordinary humans.
[Image of Luffy here.]
“Well, it looks like I can finally start my adventure in this world!” Luffy commented, still in the dark but ready to leave that barrel and begin his journey.
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