Cherreads

Chapter 269 - Chapter 269: Not So Ordinary Pirates

"Ah," Luffy's face showed a solemn expression. "The ancestor of Zoro has appeared, and he wants to compete with him for the position of the greatest swordsman!"

"???" Nami looked at Luffy with a strange expression. Every word he said made sense individually, but together, they formed nonsense.

"That's not my ancestor, just my master!" Zoro, who was lying there, shouted. "What are you even talking about?"

"Even so," Usopp scratched his head, "that person does look a lot like you!"

As the Straw Hats continued their nonsense, Nami finally learned of their recent experiences.

In the original events, Luffy and his crew, while dining at the Baratie, encountered Krieg, the so-called overlord of the East Blue, who had returned in disgrace after failing on the Grand Line. That was also when Hawkeye Mihawk appeared, bored and chasing Krieg's fleet after seeing them row a boat.

Luffy battled Krieg and was injured, while Zoro challenged Mihawk and was soundly defeated with just a small knife.

However, in this world, where Shin's presence had caused a butterfly effect, another master swordsman had interfered—Shimotsuki Ryuma!

Perhaps he had been pursuing Mihawk for a duel, or maybe he had been drawn to Zoro's swordsmanship lineage. Whatever the case, the legendary swordsman crossed paths with Mihawk.

Given their dedication to the blade and their battle-hungry personalities, the inevitable happened: an intense duel that nearly sank the floating restaurant.

Luffy's ship ended up in shambles, and Zoro, trying to get involved in the fight, was caught in the battle's shockwaves and seriously injured.

Fortunately, Ryuma held back enough to avoid killing them outright. In the end, because of the interference of outsiders, neither Mihawk nor Ryuma felt satisfied, and the duel ended abruptly.

Luffy and the others were mostly unfazed—after all, they weren't swordsmen. Luffy, with his carefree personality, barely cared at all.

But for Zoro, who had been knocked out before he could even take part, the psychological blow was enormous—far worse than his original defeat at Mihawk's hands. His injuries this time were also far more severe, leaving him still weakened.

"Was it really that terrifying?" Nami asked stiffly, recalling what Shin had told her about the Straw Hat crew's backgrounds.

Slowly, she turned her head toward Luffy. "Luffy, I have a question... What's your relationship with the Marine hero Garp?"

"Oh, you know my grandpa?" Luffy asked, picking his nose nonchalantly.

The entire crew fell silent.

"Marine hero Garp?" Usopp laughed dryly. "As in, the guy who caught the Pirate King?!"

Seeing Luffy nod indifferently, the crew exploded.

"WHAT?!"

"Luffy, you're the grandson of a Marine hero?!"

"Then why are you a pirate?!"

The entire crew was in chaos, with Sanji and Usopp hurling questions. 

Luffy simply answered, "Because I want to be the Pirate King!"

Eventually, the crew calmed down. Nami took a deep breath and turned to Usopp.

"Usopp, your father's name is Yasopp, right?"

Usopp gulped. He had a bad feeling about this. "Yeah... Why? Do you know something?"

Nami gave him a knowing look and pulled out an old bounty poster. Back when Shin had told her all this, she had gone digging to confirm the truth. She had found this in the Grand Line's bounty records.

"Bounty poster? Let's see... Red-Haired Pirates sniper Yasopp... bounty of... wait, 10, 100, 1000, 10,000, 100 million... 950 million berries?!"

"WHAT?!" Usopp's jaw dropped. "My dad's bounty is nearly a billion?!"

"The Red-Haired Pirates... Your dad is a crew member of Shanks?!" Sanji exclaimed. "Wait a minute... Luffy, didn't you grow up in Windmill Village? You must have met him, right?"

"Oh yeah, I did!" Luffy grinned.

"You met my dad?!" Usopp cried out.

Nami rubbed her temples. "I can't believe this... Our pirate crew is ridiculously overpowered. The grandson of a naval hero, the son of a billion-berry pirate, the descendant of a legendary swordsman... Are Sanji and I the only normal ones?"

She turned toward Sanji, only to find him looking somber, cigarette smoke curling around his face.

Her heart sank. Under normal circumstances, Sanji would have jumped in with some flirtatious remark. But now, he had the look of a man with a past.

"Sanji," she hesitated, "don't tell me... your background isn't normal either?"

Sanji exhaled deeply. "Actually... I'm a member of Germa 66."

Nami: "..."

My name is Nami. I'm a village girl who joined a pirate crew consisting of an idiot captain, a lunatic swordsman, a cowardly sniper, and a perverted cook.

I thought they were like me—orphans with nowhere else to go.

I was wrong. Every single one of them has some ridiculous background.

What do I do? Should I leave before they find out I'm the only normal one?

Fortunately, Nami only panicked for a moment. Looking at them, she realized that treating them like big shots was impossible. No matter their backgrounds, they still got smacked on the head when she was angry, and they still listened when she lectured them.

With that comforting thought, she let it go.

The crew moved past the revelations quickly. Soon, they began preparing for a banquet. Nami invited her benefactor, Shin, and the entire village of Cocoyasi. Even though the villagers had already celebrated once, they didn't mind having another round.

Of course, Shin, who had been watching the entire scene with his Observation Haki, would have shown up even if Nami hadn't invited him.

*******************************

If you would like to gain early access, you can join me at www.patre on.com/bookbattalion

60+ Advance Chapters Now Available!

More Chapters