Landing at Orange Town
The boat docked gently against the deserted pier. Orange Town stretched out before us, silent. Too silent.
No townspeople in the streets. No merchants. Just damaged buildings, scattered debris, and that oppressive atmosphere of desolation.
"This doesn't smell good," Zoro muttered, scanning the area.
Luffy, on the other hand, jumped off the boat with a huge grin."COME ON! LET'S GO FIND BUGGY!"
"Luffy, wait—" I started.
Too late. He was already running off into the streets, his straw hat bouncing happily on his head.
[ANOMALY CONFIRMED][DISTANCE: 400 METERS][ANALYSIS IN PROGRESS…]
My heart tightened. Four hundred meters. That was close. Too close.
"System," I murmured as I stepped off the boat. "If it's an SCP building, how do I contain it?"
[ANOMALOUS STRUCTURES REQUIRE SPECIAL PROCEDURES][FULL DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED PRIOR TO CONTAINMENT][ESTIMATED TIME: SEVERAL DAYS]
"Great. And if it's a Keter?"
[SURVIVAL PROBABILITY AGAINST HIGH-CLASS KETER: 12%][RECOMMENDATION: IMMEDIATE RETREAT]
I swallowed. "Thanks for the reassurance."
[ADDITIONAL STATISTIC: 73% OF SCPs ARE LETHAL TO UNPREPARED HUMANS][27% ARE BENEFICIAL OR NEUTRAL][PROBABILITIES ARE NOT IN YOUR FAVOR]
"I know, I KNOW!" I hissed through clenched teeth.
Zoro gave me a strange look. "Are you talking to yourself?"
"No, I—never mind. We should follow Luffy."
"Yeah, before he does something stupid."
We started moving. Zoro took one direction. I took another, trying to follow Luffy.
Three seconds later, I realized Zoro had completely disappeared.
"Of course. He's already lost."
[RORONOA ZORO: SENSE OF DIRECTION = 0]
I sighed and quickened my pace to catch up to Luffy. My nerves were shot. Every street corner, every abandoned building, every shadow could be hiding the anomaly.
And the worst part?I didn't even know what it looked like.
Encounter with the Thief
The sound of hurried footsteps made me jump.
Someone was running. Fast. Toward us.
"LUFFY! LOOK OUT!" I shouted.
An orange blur burst out of an alley and charged straight at us. A girl. Orange hair, tight clothes, a bag over her shoulder. She rushed past us like an arrow, then stopped abruptly.
She turned around, studied us for a few seconds, then a calculating smile appeared on her face.
"Perfect!" she said before hiding behind us. "Captain! Protect me!"
"Huh?" Luffy blinked. "Who are you?"
"Shh!"
Three pirates burst out of the same alley, panting and furious.
"THE THIEF! SHE'S HERE!"
They stopped dead when they saw us—more precisely, when they saw Luffy smiling innocently at them.
"Hi!" he said cheerfully.
The pirates exchanged nervous glances. The girl behind us—Nami, without a doubt—slipped behind a building while continuing to watch us.
"Are you… are you with her?" one pirate asked.
"With who?" Luffy tilted his head.
"The thief! The girl who just stole our treasure!"
"Oh really? She stole a treasure? Cool!"
The pirates raised their weapons. "Then you're her accomplices! Prepare to—"
Luffy yawned. "You're weak."
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Three punches. Three pirates down. Over in less than five seconds.
"There," Luffy said, stretching. "So, where's Buggy?"
I turned to the girl as she stepped out of hiding with a satisfied smile.
"Was that them, Buggy?" Luffy asked hopefully.
"Buggy looks like a clown," I replied. "Not like random pirates."
Nami approached us, intrigued. "You're looking for Buggy the Clown?"
"Yeah! I want to meet him!"
She frowned. "Why?"
"Because we're pirates!"
Nami's expression changed instantly. Her smile vanished, replaced by a wary, calculating look.
"Pirates…?"
"Yeah! I'm Monkey D. Luffy, and I'm going to become the Pirate King!"
She studied us carefully, then relaxed slightly."I see. In that case… follow me. I can take you to Buggy."
[ALERT: ANOMALY — DISTANCE: 50 METERS]
I froze. Fifty meters? It was HERE?
[DISTANCE: 45 METERS][DISTANCE: 40 METERS]
It was getting closer.
My heart raced. I scanned my surroundings, every corner, every window, every shadow.
"Marc?" Luffy looked at me curiously. "You okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," I lied. "Let's go."
The Hunt
Nami started walking, guiding us through the deserted streets of Orange Town. Luffy followed cheerfully, asking a thousand questions she answered evasively.
Me? I was on edge.
[DISTANCE: 35 METERS][DISTANCE: 30 METERS]
It was getting closer again. But from where? Which direction?
"I'll be right back!" I suddenly said.
Luffy turned around. "Huh? Where are you going?"
"I… forgot something! Go on without me! I'll catch up!"
"But—"
"Trust me! Go with her!"
I knew Luffy was safe. Fate was on his side. As long as no major anomaly disrupted the course of events, he would always make it out fine.
But me?I had to find that SCP. Now.
I ran in the opposite direction, following the system's guidance.
[DISTANCE: 25 METERS]
I turned into an alley.
[DISTANCE: 30 METERS]
What? It was getting farther?
I changed direction.
[DISTANCE: 35 METERS][DISTANCE: 40 METERS]
"No, no, NO!" I growled, speeding up.
No matter where I went, the anomaly moved away. As if it were fleeing from me. Or worse… as if it were hunting someone else.
I searched house after house. Abandoned buildings, looted by Buggy's pirates. Overturned furniture. Broken windows. But no trace of an anomaly.
[DISTANCE: 60 METERS][DISTANCE: 80 METERS][DISTANCE: 120 METERS]
"DAMN IT!"
Buggy's Trap
In the distance, I heard an explosion.
BOOM!
Then screams. Laughter. The unmistakable sound of a fight.
"Luffy…"
I changed course and ran toward the noise. Through the streets, over debris, I sprinted with all my strength.
[DISTANCE: 100 METERS][DISTANCE: 80 METERS][DISTANCE: 60 METERS]
The anomaly was getting closer again. Was it heading toward the fight?
I reached a large square. And there, I saw it.
Luffy, trapped inside a metal cage.
Buggy the Clown, with his ridiculous red nose and deranged grin, stood in front of him.
Nami, holding a lighter, stood near a cannon aimed at the cage.
"Fire, my dear!" Buggy ordered with a shrill laugh. "Blow that brat to pieces!"
Nami hesitated, the lighter trembling in her hand.
"Fire, or you die with him!"
She looked at Luffy, then at the cannon, then—
She dropped the lighter.
"No."
Buggy frowned. "What?"
"I said NO!"
The fight erupted. Buggy's pirates attacked Nami. Luffy shouted from inside the cage. And suddenly—
BOOM!
A cannonball, fired accidentally, exploded next to the cage. The bars bent. Luffy burst out laughing as he escaped.
"GYAHAHAHA! THANKS FOR FREEING ME!"
And chaos began.
Buggy used his Devil Fruit, separating his body into floating pieces. Luffy attacked, but his punches passed right through.
"BAHAHAHA! YOU CAN'T TOUCH ME, KID!"
Then Zoro appeared. Literally. Out of nowhere. Like magic.
"I found the way," he said simply.
"WHERE WERE YOU?!" Luffy and Nami shouted in unison.
He shrugged. "Lost."
The battle resumed in full force. Zoro took on the henchmen, cutting everything in his path. But one of them, sneaky, stabbed him in the back.
"ZORO!" Luffy yelled.
Furious, Luffy grabbed Buggy's floating parts and, with Nami's help, blasted him away with cannon fire.
The clown's scattered pieces flew in every direction before crashing down, defeated.
The Discovery
I ran toward them, out of breath—mentally, not physically.
[DISTANCE: 20 METERS][DISTANCE: 15 METERS][DISTANCE: 10 METERS]
I stopped in front of them.
[DISTANCE: 5 METERS][DISTANCE: 3 METERS]
My gaze swept over the group. Luffy. Zoro. Nami.
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
[ANOMALY IDENTIFIED: IMMEDIATE PROXIMITY]
I looked at Nami. More precisely… her belt.
A key hung from it. Small. Metallic. But its shape was… strange. Not the kind of key you'd normally see in One Piece. Too complex. Too… other.
[CONFIRMATION: ANOMALOUS OBJECT DETECTED][ANALYSIS IMPOSSIBLE WITHOUT DIRECT CONTACT][RECOMMENDATION: RETRIEVE AND TEST IN LABORATORY]
I stepped closer. "Hey, Nami? What's that key on your belt?"
She looked down and brushed her fingers over it with a nostalgic smile."This? It's my lucky charm. I've had it forever."
"Can I take a closer look?"
Her expression changed instantly. Wary. Protective.
"No. It's personal."
"Just to look—"
"I said no." She tightened her grip on the key. "It's important to me."
[PROBLEM DETECTED][TARGET REFUSES TO COOPERATE][SOLUTION: THEFT]
I looked at Nami. The professional thief. The one who could steal anything without anyone noticing.
And now, it was me who had to steal from her.
The irony was almost funny.
"Alright," I said with a forced smile. "No problem."
But in my head, I was already planning.
How do you steal a key from the best thief in East Blue?
[END OF CHAPTER 6][ANOMALIES CAPTURED: 1/???][ANOMALY IDENTIFIED: NAMI'S LUCKY KEY][CLASSIFICATION: UNKNOWN (TESTING REQUIRED)][AFFILIATION: STRAW HAT CREW][SCP-006 SYMBIOSIS: 63%][NEW MEMBER: NAMI (NAVIGATOR)][OBJECTIVE: RETRIEVE THE KEY WITHOUT BEING CAUGHT][DIFFICULTY: VERY HIGH]