[Note:
" * " : Indicates abilities that can be upgraded with practice, experience, or unique opportunities.]
> System inner voice ["speaking"] <
> Ash inner speech "speaking" <
{}
Coby stood frozen as he found himself surrounded on all sides by Ace, Uta, Selina, and Lucy, all of them looking down at him.
His legs began to shake on their own, knees knocking softly as he tried to stand straight. His hands curled into fists at his sides. He swallowed hard.
From the wheel, Ash glanced back and let out a short laugh, shaking his head before turning his eyes forward again.
Ace tilted her head slightly. "So," she said bluntly, "what's with this wimp? Why'd you bring him along, Lucy?"
Lucy burst out laughing. "Shishishi! He begged me and Ash!" She pointed straight at Coby, who flinched immediately. "Said he didn't want to be caught by the Marines and that he was trying to escape from that chunky lady. He kept saying he wasn't really with her crew."
Selina stepped in before Lucy could continue. "Your name's Coby, right?" she asked calmly. "That's what Alvida called you."
Coby nodded so fast it looked like his head might come loose. His glasses slipped slightly down his nose, and he hastily pushed them back up with trembling fingers.
Selina watched him for a moment, then asked, "So how did you end up with her crew in the first place?"
Coby inhaled sharply, "It… it was a couple of years ago," he began. "I got on a small boat on the outskirts of my town to go fishing. I didn't even know until it was too late."
His voice shook as he continued. "That boat ended up going at a pirate ship. From then on… for two years, I was forced to work as their chore boy in exchange for my life."
Lucy squinted at him for a second, then burst out, "Man… you're dumb and stupid."
Coby's face crumpled instantly. Tears welled up and spilled over as he sniffed loudly. "Y-you're brutally honest…" he muttered, voice breaking.
He wiped at his eyes with his sleeve, hands shaking. "I stayed because… because I was scared for my life," he admitted. "I was too afraid to run."
Ace crossed her arms with a huff. "No wonder. You really are a wimp."
That did it.
Lucy leaned closer, pointing at him. "Yeah. Man, I hate you."
"E-eh… ehh… ehhh…", Coby's shoulders shook as he started crying outright, tears streaming down his face like a broken dam.
"I know…" he said between sobs, forcing the words out. "If only I had been brave like you guys from the start… I would've escaped long ago." He swallowed hard. "I finally worked up the courage to run today. And even then… I got caught."
Uta stepped closer, her expression softening. She gently patted his shoulder. "But you still tried," she said quietly. "That counts."
Coby froze.
He looked up at her, eyes wide, tears still rolling down his cheeks. For a moment, he couldn't even speak.
"Y-yes…" he said, nodding repeatedly. "Thanks to you guys… I'm free now." His voice trembled again, but this time there was something else mixed in. "I'll never forget this. Never."
Coby sniffed once more and wiped his face with his sleeve, trying—poorly—to compose himself. His gaze drifted from Lucy to Ace, then to Uta and Selina. All of them stood relaxed now, talking casually, as if they hadn't just crushed an entire pirate crew.
He hesitated, then spoke up quietly.
"Um… can I ask something?"
Lucy glanced at him. "Huh?"
Coby swallowed. "You're all really strong," he said, voice unsure but sincere. "And… you saved the people on that ship. You even helped me." He clenched his fists. "If you're this strong…, why are you pirates?"
The deck went quiet for a moment.
Coby looked between them, gathering courage. "You could've become Marines. You could be heroes. You could help people and protect them properly."
Lucy stared at him for a second. Then she burst out laughing.
"Ahahaha!" She planted her hands on her hips, grinning wide. "Because I wanna be the Queen of the Pirates!"
Coby blinked. "Q-queen…? I thought it was King of the Pirates?"
Lucy looked at him like he'd just said something incredibly stupid. "Duh. I'm a girl."
She jabbed a thumb at Ash at the wheel. "He's gonna be the King of the Pirates."
Then she swept her arm out, pointing at Ace, Uta, Selina, Anne and Shiruku. "And with our crew —"
Her grin widened, eyes shining. "We're gonna find the greatest treasure in the world."
She leaned forward slightly, voice full of absolute certainty.
Coby froze, "The… One Piece?" His voice shook as panic rushed back in. "That's the greatest treasure in the world sought out by every pirate in the world is chasing it! So many died trying! That's impossible!" He shook his head violently.
Lucy says, "Of course, we will."
Coby shakes in head, "No way no way, it's impossible utterly impossible. There is no chance. and to think about becoming king or queen of pirates which is only given to one who has everything in the world wealth, fame and power."
He looked at them desperately, "No matter how strong you are… you can't just decide to stand at the apex of the Great Pirate Era!"
Bonk…Bonk…Bonk…Bonk
Lucy, Ace, Selina—and even Uta—bonked him in quick succession.
Coby yelped, clutching his head. "W-why did you all hit me?!"
Lucy says, "Just because we couldn't stand you."
Coby lowered his head, rubbing the sore spots. "It's… fine. I'm used to it anyways."
Lucy not caring says, "It's not about whether we can do it or not. We are going to do it because we want to. Me and Ash decided to become Pirate King and Pirate Queen, and if we die fighting for that that fine with us, because it's our dream."
Selina adds, "You said we might not be powerful enough to reach the apex but Power isn't determined by your size, but the size of your heart and dreams."
Coby listens to them with inspired look shocked by their resolution.
Uta then says, "Every one in our crew has their dream on their own. We might face any unknowns but we have each other…..."
Ace finishes uta's sentence, "…. and on our way to achieve our dreams if we fail or die trying, at least we tried.
Coby looks at them with awe. Even Anne and Shiruku who stood at the side looks at their crew in new light and their resolution to be strong hearing their words.
Ash from his place looks at this with smile he didn't think this scene he was waiting that changes Coby's life will turn out this way.
Coby stood with his head lowered, fingers clenched tightly into his sleeves.
"…Do you think …. Do you think," he whispered, voice trembling, "that I could accomplish my dream?"
No one spoke.
"If I'm willing to die for it…" His shoulders shook. "Do you think I could become a Marine?"
Lucy blinked. "A Marine?"
Coby lifted his head just enough for them to see his eyes, wet but steady, "Catching bad guys… protecting people by being a marine," he said quietly. "That's always been my dream." He swallowed. "Do you think… I can do it?"
Lucy stared at him for a moment, then shrugged, "I wouldn't know."
Coby flinched—then clenched his teeth.
"… I'll try do it anyway," he said. "No— I won't try." His voice grew firmer. "I'll become a Marine. And I'll catch bad guys."
He took a shaky breath, "I know we'll be enemies someday." He bowed deeply. "But… this is my dream."
For a moment, only the sound of waves filled the air.
Ash stepped away from the wheel, the ship now moving steadily under the current, "Well," he said, calm as ever, "who are we to stop someone from chasing their dream?"
Coby looked up.
"By tomorrow morning, we'll reach Shells Town," Ash continued. "There's a Marine base there. Since you're already with us, we'll drop you off."
Coby's breath caught. "Thank you, Ash-san."
Ash smiled faintly. "You've got a good heart, Coby. Don't ever lose it."
Coby bit his lip hard, tears spilling despite himself.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning light spilled across the sea, turning the water gold as the ship cut forward at a steady pace.
Ash stood at the wheel, one hand resting loose against the worn wood, eyes forward. Uta stood in front of him, close enough that her back pressed comfortably against his chest, her hands resting over his.
She tilted her head back slightly, just enough to glance up at him, a playful glint in her eyes.
"You know," she murmured, shifting her butt just around his groin, "it's kind of unfair that you get the best view every morning."
Ash exhaled through his nose, amused. "Uta."
She moved again—deliberate this time.
Ash leaned closer, voice low near her ear. "If you don't stop," he warned calmly, "what happens next won't involve my hands staying on this wheel."
She giggled softly, clearly pleased with herself.
Before she could push her luck further, a voice rang out from above.
"Oi! You two!" Ace called from the crow's nest. "Stop flirting and look ahead. Land's coming up."
Ash lifted his gaze.
There it was—green rising from the horizon, the shape of an island cutting through the morning haze.
A slow smirk tugged at his lips. "Finally." Ash nodded once. "Uta. Gather the rest."
Uta turned, rose onto her toes, and pressed a quick peck to his lips before stepping away.
"On it, Captain."
She moved across the deck, voice carrying as she called the crew together, while Ash steadied the wheel and guided the ship toward land.
The ship slowed as the hull slid smoothly against the dock.
Lucy jumped down first, boots hitting the ground with a heavy thud. She threw her arms up.
"Yosh! We finally made it."
Ash stayed aboard long enough to drop the anchor and hopping down to loop the rope around the dock post, securing the ship before joining beside her dusting his hands off.
Lucy squinted at the town ahead. "Hey, where's Nami? I thought she said she'd meet us here."
Ash shrugged, unfazed. "You know her. She's probably up to something." A faint smirk crossed his face. "We'll be here for a while. She'll find us. And if she doesn't… we'll find her."
Behind them, Selina and Ace began bringing the prisoners down one by one. Shiruku and Anne helped where they could, straining as they dragged the unconscious captains along the dock.
Ace clicked her tongue. "Next time, let's not bring this many."
"Yeah," Ash said lightly. "For now," He glanced toward the town. "Take them to the Marine base. Collect the bounty."
Selina nodded and moved ahead, Ace taking the lead while Shiruku and Anne followed, doing their best to keep up.
Uta stepped down last, falling into place beside Ash. Lucy naturally took the other side, hands clasped behind her head as she started toward town without waiting.
While balloon flew away to look around the island himself.
Coby followed a few steps behind them, eyes darting toward the unfamiliar streets and the Marine insignia ahead which is visible.
Lucy glanced back. "Hey, Coby. Why not go with them to the Marine base?"
Uta added gently, "They might even enlist you right away if you apply. They'd think you helped catch those pirates."
Coby shook his head. "I don't want to do it like that," he said quietly. "Even if they make me a chore boy again, I'll start from the bottom. On my own."
He looked up at them, determination trembling but real. "One day, I'll be strong enough to stand in front of you. Even if we're enemies."
Ash and Lucy laughed.
"Don't make us wait too long," Ash said.
Uta smiled. "So," she said, looking around, "what is there to see in this town? I want to explore before we leave."
Coby spoke before he could stop himself. "I… I don't know much," he admitted, then lowered his voice. "But I heard something while I was on Alvida's ship."
They slowed slightly.
"There's a pirate hunter here," Coby whispers. "Roronoa Zoro. He's being held captive at this Marine base." His voice dropped further. "They say he chopped down bounties and pirates like a bloodthirsty beast. A demon in human form. You guys have be careful."
The three of them stared at him.
Then laughed.
Coby stomped his foot, flustered. "H-hey! Don't laugh! I'm serious!
They had already reached the center of the market.
Coby walked a few steps ahead of them, waving his arms frantically, his body half-turned as he spoke to them instead of watching where he was going, "No, no—this isn't funny at all! Zoro is really dangerous—!"
He stopped mid-sentence because all around them, people froze.
Merchants dropped what they were holding. Shoppers stiffened, eyes widening. In the blink of an eye, stalls were abandoned as people ducked behind crates, slipped into alleys, or hid behind doors, fear spreading like a ripple.
Ash, Lucy, and Uta came to a stop.
Lucy blinked, looking around. One eyebrow slowly lifted.
Uta glanced from side to side, confused, her other eyebrow rising to match Lucy's.
Ash took it all in—and smirked.
Coby shrank in on himself, lowering his voice to a whisper. "S-see? We shouldn't say Zoro's name out loud…"
Lucy tilted her head, staring at the empty street. "Huh." She grinned. "Now I really wanna see him."
Coby looked at her like she'd kicked him.
Lucy turned to Ash. "Let's go. He sounds interesting. I wanna see what this Zoro guy is made of."
Ash shrugged casually. "Sure. The others might already there anyway. We might even meet up with them."
Coby panicked. "N-no! You shouldn't even look at him!" He gulped. "Be-Because the captain here—Captain Morgan—!"
The reaction was instant.
The few people who hadn't already hidden vanished completely. Slamming the doors and windows shut. The street went dead silent.
Lucy stared for a second.
Then she burst out laughing, "Pfft—what a funny town."
Coby slowed as they walked, his shoulders stiff, "I… I understand why people were scared when I said Zoro's name," he muttered, glancing around uneasily. "But why Captain Morgan too? He's a Marine captain, right…?"
His voice wavered near the end. A shiver ran through him. "I suddenly feel uneasy about this whole thing."
Lucy shrugged, hands clasped behind her head again. "Maybe they just like jumping around for fun."
Coby stopped walking. "N-no one does that for fun…"
Ash and Uta shared a faint smile. Neither of them corrected Lucy.
They finally reached the Marine base—tall stone walls, iron gates looming over the street.
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
To be continued...
Thanks for reading this chapter!
I'd love to hear your thoughts — not just on the plot, but the journey itself. Is the pacing feeling right to you so far? Too fast, too slow, or just, right? Are there any moments, themes, or dynamics you feel are missing or could be explored more — like deeper character bonds, world-building, emotional scenes, or even new twists? Anything.
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