Journey to Raftel Chapter 13 (Patreon)

Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of Journey to Raftel! The newly dubbed ‘Straw Hats’ make their way to Loguetown! With Carina on board, a certain pirate by the name of Mad Treasure might not be too far behind. Will the Straw Hats run into the man and his crew? What will become of Loguetown if they do? How will the resident Marine Captain react to such a thing? Can the Straw Hats even finish a simple supply run without everything going to hell?

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So, without further delay, please enjoy.

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Chapter 13 – Loguetown Supply Run

“Land, ho!” One of Luffy’s copies called out from the Crow’s Nest while looking through a telescope. Luffy grinned widely, sitting on Merry’s Figurehead, as he watched the island get larger on the horizon.

“That’s Loguetown alright, excited?” Nami asked her Captain with a grin.

“Yep!” Luffy chuckled while looking ahead.

“Can you stop shooting those looks at me, Cat Burglar?” Carina rolled her eyes, catching Nami watching her again. “I’m not going to do anything.” The fact that she was relaxed on a lounge chair and had both a fruity drink and a snack (both made by Sanji) would lead anyone to believe her words. By Luffy’s order, Carina was being treated as a guest. Sanji had absolutely no problems with this, of course, happily doting on the woman with heart-shaped eyes.

“No way, Hell Cat.” Nami denied Carina instantly. “The second that you’re not being watched is the second that things start to go missing.”

“She’s been on her best behavior, so far.” Reiju giggled at the back and forth between the two thieves. The pinkette had kept an eye on Carina herself, just to be safe.

“If she tries anything, then she loses guest privileges.” Luffy chuckled, looking over his shoulder at Carina. The various laughs from his many copies manning the ship made it obvious that he had eyes everywhere.

“After how well you’ve treated me, Captain?” Carina shot him a playful wink. “I feel like I should give you a little reward.”

“Hell no!” Nami stood between Luffy and Carina, glaring at the purple-haired woman. “As soon as we dock in Loguetown, you’re going off on your own again!”

“Stingy.” Carina stuck her tongue out at Nami. The teasing smile on her lips afterward made Nami consider chucking a fireball at the other thief. But that meant Carina would ‘win’ this little game and she refused to let that happen.

Several minutes later the Going Merry was docking at Loguetown. The crew would be splitting up to take care of various tasks before they continued their voyage to the Grand Line. But at the moment, Nami and Carina were saying their ‘goodbyes’ to each other.

“Well, it’s been fun, Cat Burglar.” Carina grinned at Nami.

“Get out of here, Hell Cat.” Nami waved the other woman away. “If we let you hang around then we’ll wind up penniless the second you disappear.”

“I didn’t steal anything these last couple of days!” Carina reminded Nami with a pout.

“You mean you couldn’t steal anything.” Nami pointed out, not believing Carina’s innocent act for a second.

“You sure know how to get on people’s nerves, Cat Burglar.” Carina leaned forward, getting into Nami’s personal space.

“Like you’re one to talk, Hell Cat!” Nami leaned forward as well, butting heads with Carina.

“See you around, Cat Burglar.” Carina suddenly switched tactics and pulled Nami into a hug. “Thanks for the ride.”

“Yeah, yeah, just go.” Nami returned the hug briefly and the two women separated. “Give me back my wallet though.”

“You give back mine.” Carina grinned as the two revealed the other’s wallet in their hands.

The thief women swapped wallets, both going through them quickly to make sure nothing had been removed in the brief moment that they’d been stolen. Once both were satisfied, they pocketed their respective wallets and Carina turned to the rest of the crew.

“Thanks for the ride, it was fun.” Carina smiled at them. “The food was delicious.”

“Carina-chan~!” Sanji was in love mode as he barely restrained himself from noodling his way over to her.

“Still don’t see what the big deal was.” Zoro shrugged, not having any problems the whole time that Carina had been on their ship.

“Shishishishi…sail with us any time.” Luffy thought she was fun, and despite what Nami said, it was clear the two thieves were friendly with each other.

“I might take that invitation someday, Captain.” Carina gave him a flirty wink, and seeing the glare that Nami shot at her, she giggled. “Ushishi!” With a quick wave Carina dashed off into the crowds of Loguetown and seemingly disappeared a second later.

“She was an interesting one.” Reiju commented as Nami rejoined the group.

“More like a pain in the butt.” Nami sighed, though there was some warmth in her words.

“This place really is huge.” Luffy commented as he looked down the large Main Street of Loguetown.

“Well yeah, this is where the Age of Pirates began.” Sanji replied, his eyes looking over the crowd and spotting dozens of lovely young women.

“I want to see the execution platform!” Luffy decided with a nod of his head. He really wanted to see the spot where the Pirate King had met his end. He’d been called the Freest Man in the World back when he’d had fame, wealth, and power after finding Raftel. Luffy wanted to see what Roger had seen in his last moments.

“I’m sure I can stock up on some fine ingredients in the market.” Sanji nodded as his eyes drifted from one woman to another. “Some fine women too.”

“I’ll take care of supplies and daily necessities.” Reiju offered, knowing her brother’s focus would be split between food and women, leaving no brain power for other things. “A town this large should have everything that we could need before we sail to the Grand Line.”

“I do have something I want to buy too, but….” Zoro trailed off and Nami’s eyes practically sparkled.

“I’ll lend you the money Zoro, at three hundred percent interest, that is.” Nami smiled pleasantly; as if she hadn’t just offered her crewmate an outright insane interest rate.

“Nami….” Luffy placed his hand on her shoulder and turned the orangette to face him. “None of that.”

“But Luffy~” Nami pouted and made her eyes tear up a bit. Luffy smiled and kissed her forehead, making Nami sigh. Her lover was getting used to her tricks. She’d have to tempt him with ‘other’ things occasionally it would seem. “Fine~” Nami pecked his lips and then opened her wallet which was filled to bursting with Ten-Thousand denomination Beri bills.

“We aren’t low on funds, and we’re headed for the Grand Line. I don’t want Zoro to be stuck with bad swords. That goes for everyone.” Luffy looked at Reiju and Sanji too. “We should buy good quality stuff while we can. I don’t want my nakama getting hurt because we decided to be cheap when we didn’t need to be.” He explained and all of the crew smiled slightly. This was another reason they followed Luffy as Captain. Simple-minded he often was, but he knew enough to look after his subordinates, and he was willing to do anything for their sake if they required it.

“Alright, Luffy.” Nami smiled at him and the straw-hatted teen chuckled. “Just don’t cause any trouble.” She looked at Luffy, Zoro, and then Sanji in turn. “I’ve heard the Marine Captain in this town is a real hard-ass. So be careful not to make a scene.” That got a quick nod from everyone, before Luffy turned to look at Zoro.

“How much do you think you’ll need Zoro?” Luffy asked his First Mate and Swordsman.

“A decent sword is usually 100,000 Beri.” Zoro mused as he placed his hand on Wado Ichimonji.

“What about one as good as that one?” Luffy asked as he pointed to the white sword.

“This one?” Zoro looked uncertain for a moment as he looked over his prized sword. “Probably a million Beri, maybe?” He vaguely knew Wado’s monetary value, but as it was priceless to him, he didn’t worry about it.

“Give him two million Beri, just in case, Nami.” Luffy told his Navigator/Treasurer.

Nami nodded before speaking. “I don’t have that much on me. I’d need it brought from the ship.”

“Sure thing.” Luffy leapt and rocketed back towards the Going Merry. It was only a minute or so later that he landed next to the group again. “Here you go, Nami.” Luffy handed over two stacks of bound Beri bills, each one worth one million Beri.

“Thank you, Luffy.” Nami took the two stacks, eyeing the cash appreciatively.

“Thanks.” Zoro nodded and tried to take the money from the orangette, only he had to struggle as Nami had a death grip on the two stacks. Eventually Nami relinquished the money with crocodile tears running down her face. “Greedy witch.” Zoro rolled his eyes as he stashed the money in his haramaki. With funds secured to purchase two new swords, he walked into Loguetown to search for a weapon shop.

“Reiju, how much do you think you’ll need?” Luffy asked the pinkette with a smile.

“Around two hundred thousand Beri, I believe.” Reiju spoke after a moment to think and consider all of the things that they’d need for the voyage. Nami, begrudgingly, handed over the money, much to Reiju’s amusement.

“Sanji?” Luffy turned to his Chef, only to find the blonde man already murmuring to himself about ingredients and prices.

“I’d say one hundred thousand should be good.” Sanji nodded after totaling up the list in his head. “That much should keep even your bottomless pit of a stomach fed for a while.” Nami handed the bills over to Sanji, with just slightly less reluctance than the others since his was the smallest amount. The chef was instantly headed towards the market, though both Nami and Luffy quickly noticed he was following after a small group of twenty-something women.

“I’m going clothes shopping.” Nami informed Luffy with a smile. “I’ll make sure to get a few things for your eyes only~” She breathily whispered to him before leaving a lingering kiss on his cheek. “Make sure you don’t cause any trouble, okay?”

“Sure thing, Nami!” Luffy grinned widely at her, pecking her lips before heading off towards the center of town. Thankfully there were signs leading to the execution platform. It WAS a major tourist attraction for Loguetown after all.

“He better remember.” Nami sighed fondly after Luffy. The beautiful young woman then smiled as she turned and made her way to the merchant district. She could already see some signs for various shops, especially the signs that said ‘Sale’ in large, bright letters!

-Treasure Pirates Ship-

“You sure that the thief would head towards Loguetown?” A woman questioned as their ship sailed towards the last island in the East Blue. She was a slim tan-skinned woman with puffy brown hair. She wore a light green shirt with the name ‘NAOMI’ on it, pink pants, a white fur coat, and was adorned with jewelry on her body. She also wore a black cap and a necklace with the letter ‘N’ on it. This was Naomi Drunk, an archer and the resident sharpshooter of the Treasure Pirates.

“It makes sense, doesn’t it? Just think about it a little bit. We all know who’s the Captain of that place. The thief probably thinks she can hide their and slip away without a trace.” A short man answered Naomi’s question. He was a dark-skinned man with somewhat big lips. He wore a pink winter coat, a cap with the word ‘PSY’ on it, and a pair of very small sunglasses. This was Psycho P, one of the officers of the Treasure Pirates.

“Naomi, Psycho P…” Their Captain spoke up with a grin. “Are you ready for another treasure hunt?!” Mad Treasure roared with his eyes wide in excitement. This was the rush he lived for! The thrill of the hunt! The chase! He could never get enough!

Mad Treasure was a dark-skinned muscular man with very wild and spiky purple hair. He wore dark gray pants pulled up to the knee, a red belt, and gray boots with red lining. Mad Treasure had two tattoos of gears with spirals inside them; one on his left shoulder, and the other on his right hip. He wore a pair of sunglasses, behind which were his pink eyes, and his body was decorated with chains.

“Psycho P…make sure we go unseen on our approach to Loguetown.” Mad Treasure smirked. “Let’s give them a surprise before they even know we’re there. Jararara…” He chuckled with dark amusement.

“You got it, boss man.” Psycho P replied as he pulled two spray paint cans from his jacket pockets. “Leave it to the Camouflage Man with the plan.” He grinned as he began to shake the can, the distinct clacking sound heard by all.

-Loguetown Marine Base-

“Captain Smoker, sir!” An Ensign saluted his superior as he entered the room. The room in question was heavy with smoke. A white haired man sat on a couch and was stacking rocks on the coffee table in front of him. The man had an impressive tower of seven rocks stacked up already.

“What is it?” Smoker inquired as he placed the eighth rock on top of the stack.

“We have word that the Treasure Pirates were spotted heading in the direction of Loguetown by a scout patrol. We haven’t confirmed the pirates’ course for sure, though it seems possible that they could be heading here to try and enter the Grand Line.” The Ensign reported.

“Why are you bothering me if you haven’t confirmed anything?” Smoker questioned his subordinate with a sharp gaze.

“They’re one of the most wanted crews in the East Blue. The Captain alone has an 18,000,000 Beri Bounty, sir. I felt it was prudent to inform you as soon as possible.” The Ensign answered and Smoker stood up.

“I do things at my own pace.” The Marine Captain exhaled a cloud of smoke around the two cigars in his mouth. “Don’t throw me off and break my concentration.” The white haired man put on his coat. The coat was white with dark blue fur lining the hem, cuffs, and collar of the garment. Several cigars were also strapped to the left side of the jacket. The smoking man then grabbed an oversized Jitte and strapped it to his back. “Where’s Tashigi?”

“Petty Officer Tashigi went to retrieve her sword from the weapons shop she frequents, sir.” The Ensign replied.

“Still? How many hours does that take?” Smoker questioned as they walked through the base. As soon as the duo emerged from the base and onto the city streets a small girl bumped into Smoker’s leg.

“Captain Smoker?!” The obvious Father cried out in fear. “Please forgive my daughter, sir!” The young girl simply sniffled at losing her triple scoop ice cream cone.

“Sorry about that.” Smoker apologized to the young girl. He placed several Beri coins into her small hands. “Go get yourself a five scoop cone, on me.” With that the large Marine returned to his full height and walked off with the Ensign.

“Th-thank you, Captain!” The father bowed while the little girl smiled and waved happily at the retreating Smoker. The man simply raised his hand in a backward wave and then turned the corner.

-Reiju-

“Are you sure that you can’t come down on the price just a little?” Reiju asked the man behind the counter of a general goods store. She leaned forward a bit, showing off a little more of her cleavage.

“I-I’m sorry, ma’am…but lightbulbs are 9,000 Beri for a four pack.” The shopkeeper was clearly having trouble against Reiju’s haggling tactics. “They’re still not a widespread technology, so they’re pricey.”

“But I’m buying two four packs…couldn’t I get a slight discount for buying so many?” Reiju stood back up to her full height, making her girls bounce a bit and catching the man’s eye. The fact that she cocked her hip slightly to emphasize her curves wasn’t lost on the man either. “I’d be very grateful.” She nearly purred and the man was clearly breaking down for the beautiful woman.

“For two…I could sell them for 17,000 Beri.” The man gave a slight discount to Reiju.

“How about 15,000 Beri instead?” Reiju smiled alluringly at the man. She knew how to use her looks to haggle. It was why Zeff often sent her with a few of the other cooks to procure the supplies and ingredients for the Baratie.

“Alright…” The man finally gave up, hearts in his eyes.

“Thank you very much~” Reiju smiled sexily and nearly smirked when a visible tremor ran through the man’s body. “I’d like to buy this, this, these, this, one of these, three of those, and a dozen of these…” Reiju began placing her other items onto the counter to be rung up. The man’s lovestruck eyes widened at the amount that Reiju was buying. ‘Nami should be happy that I managed to save some money.’ The pinkette grinned to herself. ‘Perhaps I could even get a little reward of my own?’ She licked her lips briefly, not noticing that the shopkeeper had seen her do so. The man nearly collapsed and was immensely grateful for his long full-body apron for hiding a certain ‘reaction’ he was having to the sexy woman.

-With Zoro-

“Seems like that Monster ain’t with you today!” A loud male voice exclaimed. The volume got Zoro’s attention and he looked across the street. There were two large men with swords drawn, facing down a young woman.

“It’s because of you guys that our Boss got locked up!” Another loud male voice joined in with the first.

“If you two still haven’t learned your lesson, then I’ll gladly be your opponent.” The woman replied back.

“Did I hear that right? A little Miss like you is going to fight both of us?!” The large man with pigtails questioned.

“Well, why not?!” The lanky man with the large mouth beside him crowed.

“Tell that Monster that he’s the reason our dream of going to the Grand Line was destroyed!” The duo of men yelled as they swung their swords at the woman.

‘She’s got this.’ Zoro realized as soon as he saw the woman begin to move. In an instant both large men hit the ground with slashes across their torsos. The young woman then proceeded to lose her footing and trip on the final step of her movement. ‘Well…I wasn’t expecting that.’ Noticing the woman’s glasses near his feet; Zoro picked them up and handed them to the swordswoman.

“Here, these’re yours, right?” Zoro offered the woman her glasses. The rest of the crowd had started chuckling at the klutz moment.

“S-sorry for troubling you.” The woman apologized as she took her glasses from him. “T-thank you very much.” When she looked up Zoro felt his body jolt. He was looking into the face of Kuina. This woman looked like a near perfect copy of his departed friend! Shaking his head a bit Zoro decided to get out of the area.

“You should work on your footing some more.” Zoro advised. “Tripping like that could lead to an accident or even death.” The woman nodded in agreement, a flush coming to her cheeks. Zoro walked away and continued his search for a weapons shop. He tried to put the Kuina look alike out of his mind.

-With Nami-

“How’s this?” Nami asked as she pulled aside the curtain of the dressing room. The orangette was showing off the outfit she had just put on. A corset top and miniskirt, with a coat that had fur trim and cuffs.

“It suits you wonderfully, Miss!” The shop keeper praised. Nami nodded before closing the curtain and trying on a different outfit. A few moments later she pulled the curtain open again.

“And this?” Nami questioned. Now wearing a long red dress with a fur stole around her neck. The dress even had a long slit up the side, all the way to her upper thigh, to show off her legs.

“How elegant you look, Miss!” The shop keeper complimented her with a smile.

“Hmm.” Nami hummed before closing the curtain and changing again. The orangette went through more outfits. Getting more compliments from the shop keeper. Strangely all of the compliments became a single word, each word starting with the letter ‘E’ at that.

“So, will you be buying all of these, Miss?” The shop keeper asked. The man, with his hair styled to look like a coat hanger of all things, was visibly shaking in excitement.

“Nope, just this one!” Nami smiled as she placed her choice on the counter next to the enormous pile of clothes she’d tried on.

“Please come again.” The shop keeper forced a smile as tears of frustration poured from his eyes.

“I’ll check somewhere else for more casual clothes.” Nami waved over her shoulder as she exited the boutique. She was happy with this outfit though. It was a beautiful light blue outfit. A corset top that showed off her slender waist and pushed up her large breasts; along with a matching miniskirt that showed off her long legs and stopped at mid-thigh. Plus the long jacket with lovely white fur along the collar and cuffs. She was sure that Luffy would love seeing her in this! ‘Though he’ll probably prefer getting me out of it even more!’ She giggled to herself as she entered a more casual clothing shop. She’d need to stop by a lingerie shop afterwards. She couldn’t tempt Luffy without sexy underwear to match her sexy new outfit after all!

In Nami’s planning for more sexy times with Luffy, she didn’t notice a certain purple-haired woman exiting the shop. The woman noticed Nami though and a little grin formed on her lips. In her new outfit, a white button up shirt with suspenders and black short pants with a black hat on her head, she looked different from earlier.

“Head in the clouds, Cat Burglar.” Carina placed a pair of sunglasses with red frames over her eyes. “Ushishi…” She walked away with bags of new clothes in hand.

“Welcome!” The female shopkeeper of the clothing store greeted Nami as the navigator walked into the store.

“Huh?” Nami stopped just as she passed the threshold of the store. “The temperature and pressure just shifted. Is it going to rain? It certainly feels like it. I’ll have to remember to get my purchases put in a plastic bag.”

-With Sanji-

“What kind of fish is this?” Sanji asked the man at the stall he’d taken notice of. Technically he’d noticed the massive fish with the elephant-like features. But he’d never seen one before, so he felt the need to ask.

“This here is an Elephant True Blue Fin!” The fisherman grinned with pride. “Though most just call it the Elephant Tuna. It’s a fish most commonly found in the South Blue. But on rare occasions you can catch them in the East Blue too! I pulled this one in with my fishing pole just this morning!”

“Whoa! You caught this thing with just a fishing pole? It’s huge.” Sanji complimented the fisherman’s skills.

“Would you like me to slice up some of it for you, sir?” The fisherman asked, happy to make a sale from his prized catch.

“No, don’t worry about that, I’ll buy the whole thing!” Sanji grinned and the fisherman broke out into a smile of his own.

“Thank you for your patronage, sir!” The fisherman replied happily. The man quickly picked up the large, heavy fish and wrapped it in thick paper. Sanji grinned as he pulled out the required Beri for the fish. A quick exchange and Sanji smiled as he hefted the large fish onto his shoulder. “Come again, sir!” The fisherman waved at Sanji, his first sale of the day and he’d made huge profit. It was a good day for him.

“Now to get this back to the Merry.” Sanji hummed as he started walking. He spotted Reiju a couple of minutes later and saw the large amount of bags that his older sister was carrying with little effort. “Yo, Reiju, you done already?”

“Sanji…” Reiju turned to greet her brother, but stopped when she caught sight of the huge fish that he was carrying. “I see you’ve found yourself a rare ingredient.” She eyed the Elephant True Blue Fin with some curiosity.

“Just bought it, nice and fresh!” Sanji grinned as he hefted it up slightly. “I want to get it back to the Going Merry and store it properly. I think it’ll make a great first meal for after we enter the Grand Line.” He smiled, already going over potential recipes in his head.

“I was heading back to the Merry, myself.” Reiju grinned at her brother. “I want to drop all of the supplies off and get them put away. Then maybe see the town a bit.”

“That would be nice.” Sanji agreed as they started walking together. “I wonder if there’ll be enough time for me to spend some of it with a lovely lady?”

“Didn’t you get enough back on Cocoyashi?” Reiju giggled at her chivalrous pervert of a little brother.

“You know that I’m a man that loves all the ladies of the world.” Sanji smiled lightly as they walked along.

“Of course…” Reiju tittered and Sanji felt his eyebrow twitch at the clear sarcasm in his big sister’s words.

-With Luffy-

“The execution platform.” Luffy grinned as he gazed upon the object. “This is where the Pirate King died.” The young man looked contemplative for a moment. “This is where the Age of Pirates began too. I want to see what the Pirate King, the Freest Man in the World, saw in his last moments!” With that the user of the Sun Wukong Fruit easily hopped up to the very top of the platform in a single leap. He also completely ignored ALL of the signs posted around the platform telling people not to touch it or climb on it.

-With Zoro-

“That was a shock.” Zoro sighed as he thought about the swordswoman again. “She looked way too much like Kuina. Well, it’s a big world. I just need to get over it.” A few moments later Zoro spotted the sign for a weapon shop and entered the store.

“Welcome!” The shop keeper smiled at him. He was a balding man with black hair that stuck out on both sides. He was rubbing his hands together and smiling a salesman’s smile. “Please feel free to look around as much as you want.”

“I want to buy some swords.” Zoro informed the man.

“Yes, of course, sir! We’ve got older swords, newer swords, and even esoteric swords! All for reasonable prices and backed by two hundred years of sterling reputation!” The shop owner spoke with a wide grin.

“Great…” Zoro rolled his eyes. He’d heard enough shop keeper spiels for a lifetime. He’d often broken his other swords in the past after all. He didn’t need to hear similar things every time he went to buy new swords.

‘Wait a minute!’ The shop owner felt himself start to sweat when he saw the sword on Zoro’s hip. ‘Is that? Could it be?’

“Young man, could I p-possibly s-see that s-sword you’ve g-got t-there?” He asked and Zoro cocked an eyebrow at the man.

“I guess.” Zoro shrugged and placed Wado on top of the counter.

‘This is it!’ The shop keeper gaped as he unsheathed the blade and looked it over for a moment. ‘Calm down, this could be a huge break! He might not even realize what he has!’

“Hmm, a good blade, the craftsmanship is notable to say the least. If you’re interested in parting with this sword, I’d be willing to make a deal with you on any sword in my shop.” Ippon Matsu, the shopkeeper, smiled at the green haired swordsman.

“Not for sale.” Zoro stated with cold finality and Ippon shivered instinctively. “Wado Ichimonji belonged to my late friend and I inherited it along with our shared dream. I will never part with this sword.”

“Y-yes, o-of c-course, s-sir!” Ippon nodded along. This man was a true swordsman! How long had it been since the old shopkeeper had met one like him?

“I knew it!” A very familiar female voice spoke up. The Kuina look alike practically slammed into the counter in her rush to get close to the famous sword. “That’s Wado Ichimonji! The ‘Straight Road of Harmony’! It’s magnificent!”

‘Why is she here?!’ Zoro yelled in his own head at seeing the woman again so soon.

“Wado Ichimonji is one of the twenty one Great Grade Swords!” The swordswoman beamed at the sword.

“Doesn’t matter.” Zoro stated as he took Wado back and sheathed it on his hip. “This sword is more important to me than its Grade or its value.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t know.” The swordswoman bowed slightly in apology. “Wait, I recognize you, we just met in the street a little while ago! Thank you for finding my glasses, I’m Tashigi.”

“Its fine, I’m just trying to buy some swords.” Zoro replied. Making sure he didn’t give his name out. He’d had issues with random ‘so-called’ swordsmen challenging him almost as soon as they heard it. “I’d like two if possible.”

“Of course, feel free to look at our collection of blades. The blunt old swords are in the barrels along the wall. The new swords are on the racks against the other wall. The highest quality swords are on their own racks on the wall next to me.” Ippon pointed out each area. “And you, woman, you’re here to pick up your ‘Shigure’ correct? Here, it’s been polished.” The shop keeper handed the sword over to the young woman. “What a wallflower like you is doing carrying a Grade Sword, I’ll never know.”

“Three swords, huh? You must like them. You remind me of a certain Bounty Hunter.” Tashigi claimed as she watched Zoro pull a sword from one of the three barrels.

“A certain Bounty Hunter?” Zoro questioned as he looked the sword over. He wasn’t even looking in her direction.

“Yes, Roronoa Zoro, do you know of him?” Tashigi questioned.

“I’ve heard that name quite a bit.” Zoro nodded as he placed the sword back in the barrel. It was just a low-quality blade that wouldn’t hold up under his swordsmanship.

“He’s quite the famous swordsman here in the East Blue. Or maybe I should say infamous.” Tashigi shook her head. “It seems all the most famous blades are in the hands of Pirates and Bounty Hunters these days. It’s such a shame. Those swords must be crying while being used for evil.”

“One’s occupation usually reflects the times they live in.” Zoro stated as he looked at Tashigi with a raised eyebrow. “Everyone has their own circumstances. You can’t call them all evil just because they do something differently than you. Bounty hunting is a necessary job in the Age of Piracy.”

“I like bad guys!” Ippon spoke up from the counter. “Plenty of pirates used to come through here looking to head for the Grand Line. Then that monster Captain of yours was put in charge of this town. Then right after that, boom, no more customers!”

“Captain Smoker is not a monster!” Tashigi retorted sharply.

“He’s a Devil Fruit User! That more than qualifies him to be called a monster!” Ippon shouted back at the young woman.

‘Devil Fruit?’ Zoro filed that bit of information away in his mind. Nami said the Captain of the Marines here was a hard-ass, but nothing about him being a Devil Fruit user.

“Regardless, as a swordsman myself, I vowed to train hard with my Shigure. Then I’ll travel the world and liberate the Famous Blades from evil hands! No matter if they’re one of the twelve Supreme Grade, one of the twenty one Great Grade, one of the fifty Skillful Grade, or one of the one hundred Grade blades!” Tashigi stated strongly.

“Does that mean you plan to take Wado Ichimonji from me?” Zoro questioned as he placed his hand on the white sword. The look in his eyes nearly made Tashigi shiver.

“No, no, I don’t want the swords for myself! I just don’t want them to be used for evil.” Tashigi raised her hands in front of her to ward off the accusation.

“Hm?” Zoro’s eyes snapped to the sword his hand had just touched. Something felt ‘off’ about this sword. Pulling it from within the barrel Zoro looked over the sword. He unsheathed it and examined the flame-like hamon pattern. This sword was different, it was special.

“Oh! That sword! I’ve seen it in my book!” Tashigi exclaimed as she pulled out a thick book from her back pocket. Flipping through the pages Tashigi stopped and glanced between the page and the sword for a second. “I was right! That’s the Sandai Kitetsu! It’s a Grade sword, just like my Shigure! Mister, are you really selling this for only 50,000 Beri? It’s worth at least one million!”

“I can’t sell that sword!” Ippon denied her as he shook his head.

“What? But why not?” Tashigi questioned clearly confused since it had been in the barrel of cheap swords.

“It’s cursed.” Zoro stated as he held the blade up.

“So you know about it?” Ippon asked while staring at the blade nervously.

“No…I can just tell.” Zoro replied, though he seemed like he was barely paying attention to the other man.

“Well you’re right!” Ippon nodded with sweat beading on his forehead. “The Kitetsu are all fine swords, but from the start with the Shodai Kitetsu they’ve carried a curse! Many a famous swordsman met their end after using one of the three Kitetsu! Now days, there’s no swordsman that will touch one of them!”

“I like it, so how much was it again? 50,000 Beri, right?” Zoro smirked as he held the sword aloft.

“You fool! I said I can’t sell that sword! If you died it’d be like I killed you myself!” Ippon shouted at the green haired swordsman.

“Let’s test it then.” Zoro grinned at the sword. “My luck or this sword’s curse. Which is stronger?” With that he tossed the blade into the air and held his arm straight out to his side. The Sandai Kitetsu spun on its descent, heading for Zoro’s arm.

“You fool! You’ll lose your arm! That sword’s edge is unparalleled!” Ippon warned while Tashigi held her hands over her mouth in worry. Zoro simply closed his eyes and waited.

‘Hehahahaha~’

Zoro could swear he heard the cackling of a mad man. He noticed it came with the same bloodlust he’d felt from the Sandai Kitetsu as well. So, the sword truly was cursed? ‘How interesting.’

The shocked and terrified Ippon and Tashigi watched as the cursed blade spun downwards. At the last moment, just as it looked like Zoro would lose his arm, the blade spun perfectly around the limb. The two could only stare as the Grade Sword stab straight through the wooden floor all the way to the hilt.

“I’ll take it!” Zoro grinned viciously while both Tashigi and Ippon collapsed at what they’d just witnessed. “Now I just need one more.” He smiled as he pulled Kitetsu from the floor and sheathed it.

“Hang on! Just wait right there!” Ippon shouted as he rushed into the back of his shop. He returned a moment later with a sword on its own stand. “This is Yubashiri, one of the fifty Skillful Grade swords. I can personally attest to its sharpness. My shop might not be much, but this is the best sword you’ll find in Loguetown. I guarantee it!”

Zoro picked up the sword. Noting its lightness, he unsheathed it to reveal a beautiful blade. The hamon was a perfect wave and the edge was insanely sharp. With a grin Zoro sheathed the sword.

“How much?” Zoro asked Ippon.

“Don’t worry about the money.” Ippon waved him off. “It’s been a very long time since I’ve seen a real swordsman. I’ll pray for your good fortune.”

“Hey, you, how much did you say swords like this were worth?” Zoro asked Tashigi. For some reason the woman was still on the ground.

“O-oh! Um, usually one million Beri to start.” Tashigi replied as she shook herself from the crazy experience of meeting this swordsman.

“How lucky.” Zoro chuckled as he pulled out the two million Beri he’d tucked away in his haramaki earlier. He placed the two stacks onto the counter with a grin.

“Hey, I said you didn’t have to pay.” Ippon tried to deny the money.

“You better take that money!” Ippon’s wife, a slightly plump woman with long, curly auburn hair demanded. She then slapped the back of his head. “This is the biggest sale we’ve made in years!”

“You’ve done your job as shopkeeper well. I’ve found two good swords thanks to you. It would dishonor me to not pay you. Take the money.” Zoro informed the man as he headed out of the shop with a backwards wave. Ippon and his wife picked up the money and took it into the back towards their safe. When Ippon returned, he noticed that Tashigi was just getting to her feet.

“You can leave now, you know? We’re closed for the rest of the day!” Ippon shooed the swordswoman out of his shop and flipped the sign to ‘Closed’. Tashigi blinked as she heard the doors lock behind her.

-With Luffy-

“Wow! So this is what the Pirate King saw when he died!” Luffy exclaimed as he stood on top of the execution platform. He looked out over the crowded plaza seeing all the people. Many of said people were looking and pointing at him curiously.

“Hey you! Get down from there!” A police officer yelled into a megaphone.

“Why?” Luffy questioned and chuckles could be heard through the nearby crowd.

“Because that execution platform belongs to the World Government, so get off of it!” The officer yelled at him again. The growing laughter of the crowd made the officer grumble. “Young man, I swear I will arrest you if you don’t get down from there right now!”

BAM

A large flare had shot above the town and exploded.

The police officer and the townspeople all looked up in confusion at the sudden event. Luffy was also looking at the smoke remaining in the air after the flare had gone off with curiosity. It didn’t seem like that was normal here, given everyone else’s reactions.

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM

Nine blasts rocked Loguetown, coming from the port.

-Loguetown Port-

“Where the hell did that pirate ship come from?!” A Marine demanded as black smoke rose into the air.

“They appeared out of nowhere!” Another Marine shouted back. “We were watching for pirate ships as normal and didn’t see anything until after they fired!”

“Th-That’s the ‘Shark Emerlada’!!!” A different Marine declared, pointing at the ship with its starboard side cannons facing the port. “It’s the ship of the Treasure Pirates!

The Shark Emeralda was a very large steel ship with shark features, including a shark's face at the bow and fins at the sides and stern. The ship was adorned on the sides with large jewels; the steel and jewels covering it helped make it very durable in comparison to standard ships. The pirate ship also had a gold bowsprit and golden claw-shaped structures on its sides. It had three masts, with the foremast having one sail and both the main mast and mizzen mast each having two sails. The front sail had ‘MAD TREASURE’ written on it, while the top middle sail had Mad Treasure's Jolly Roger on it. A smiling skull wearing sunglasses and purple, spiky hair resembling Mad Treasure, with a chain wrapped around the neck of the skull and a yellow jewel in the center. Behind the skull are crossbones, with the top two being a shovel and a pickaxe. Each side of the ship was also decked out with nine cannons.

“FOUND YOU, LITTLE THIEF!!!” Mad Treasure’s booming voice rang out from his ship as another round of cannon fire blasted the port.

What would soon come to be known as the Loguetown Incident had just begun!

-End Chapter-

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The answer was ‘No’ the Straw Hats can’t just have a normal supply run.

Mad Treasure has attacked Loguetown in search of Carina!

Smoker is definitely going to be furious!

How will the Loguetown Incident play out?

Keep reading to find out!

Until next time, later!