4 Changing Her Impressions!

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"I thought you were just a bounty hunter, a mercenary, or something like that, but you are just scum?!" She shouted at him. She was angry at herself as well for not even considering that the handsome and interesting looking man could even be a pirate.

Luffy stared at her with a serious expression, actually making her feel a bit self-conscious before it softened much to her surprise, and he gave her an understanding smile.

"You have had some experience with the scum that thinks that just because they had a ship and a jolly roger on their flag, they are worthy of being called a pirate, yeah?" When her eyes widened, he nodded. "I get that. I have dealt with worthless men like that. And let me tell you… they are not real pirates!"

The orange-haired girl gritted her teeth and glared at him. "How could you possibly understand?! There's no way you would know if you still decided to become a pirate!"

Luffy smiled in sadness.

"Scum that called themselves pirates were indirectly responsible for the death of one of my sworn brothers," Luffy said, which resulted in the instant evaporation of Nami's anger as she gasped and covered her mouth with one of her hands.

Even Coby was looking at him with wide eyes.

"Also, it was a man that called himself a pirate that humored me when I nagged him to take me with him on one of his voyages, taught me that cruelty and evilness should be fought and despised and also gave me a purpose," Luffy said, fondly remembering his time spent with Shanks. Zack and Luffy were now, after all, one person.

"A pirate is not a man who just sails the seas, pillages, and kill. That might come with the job because of how unforgiving this world is, but it does not define us. A pirate is someone who is free. Someone with very few things that they won't do to accomplish their dreams. And I want to be freest of them all. I will find One Piece and become the Pirate King!"

"You want to find One Piece?! Impossible! Impossible! Impossible! It's been two decades ever since Gold Roger was executed, and no one has yet to find it! Do you want to die or something? To become the Pirate King in the Pirate Era is utterly impossible! And- Ouch! Why did you hit me?!" Cried Coby as he crouched down and held the smoking lump that rose from the place that Luffy had hit him.

"You were being annoying," answered Luffy simply.

"Besides, I ain't afraid of dying fighting for my dream. If I die before accomplishing it, then that's all I was worth, and I am okay with that. And the only reason no one has found it is because I have yet to start looking for it."

'Such drive and conviction…' thought Coby admiringly.

Even the orange-haired girl was giving him an admiring look, which she couldn't help since his words had shattered her previous world view. Also, she was a pretty good judge of character, and she could tell that this man, Monkey D. Luffy, was a good person.

And he was pretty strong. Maybe… she shook her head immediately, not even letting that thought form completely. She was almost done gathering the money she needed. Asking for help after all this time would be pointless.

"Luffy-san!" Shouted Coby, getting the attention of the other two, as he stood up. "Then, that means that even I could also accomplish my dreams if I'm willing to die for it? If I'm willing to put my life in the line for it, could I become a marine?!"

"A marine?" Asked Luffy, cocking his head to the side thoughtfully.

For a moment, the orange-haired girl wondered if this boy was stupid, telling a man who wanted to become Pirate King that he wanted to become a part of the pirates' sworn enemies. She was going to be shocked by him once again.

"Yes! Luffy-san, I know that would make us enemies in the future, but joining the marines and catching bad guys has always been my dream!" He shouted.

"Is that so?" Mused Luffy before he grinned at Coby. "Then, if you are willing to put in the hard work and not mind dying for it, then I'm sure you can become a great marine, Coby!" He paused before shrugging his shoulders. "That is if you don't mind the corruption and the overall cruelty disguised as absolute justice that most of them are spouting nowadays."

Coby's eyes widened. "What?"

Even the orange-haired girl was giving him a curious and a bit scandalized look.

Luffy laughed in amusement. "Don't tell me that you thought all marines were just and benevolent, right? To tell you the truth, there are more evil and cruel marines disguising their selfish acts as a justice than there are scum calling themselves pirates if you look at it in a ratio-based analysis." He paused, and a dark expression appeared on his face.

"I should know considering that the marines did nothing to stop a part of the island I used to live in, the one in which the poor lived, and that was also used as a dumpster by the wealthier ones, to be burned down just because they wanted the approval of someone one from the World Government."

His audience gasped in shock, and he smiled wanly at them.

"The world ain't black and white only. There are also shades of gray abound. And you don't judge people by what they are or what they say. You judge them by what they do, and it's up to you to decide whether you agree with them or not, which would then tell you what kind of person you are after you answer that question. That was what that pirate taught me."

Coby gaped at him in disbelief before he shook his head, and he tightened his fist, glaring at him in defiance. "I don't care! And if that's the case, then I'm going to change the marines! If they're truly only a corrupted bunch of evil guys sanctioned by the World Government, then I'm going to go there and revolutionize it if I have to... damn it! My dream is to become a marine, a symbol of true justice!"

The orange-haired girl gave him an incredulous look while Luffy laughed in delight and grinned so widely at him that it looked almost ready to split his face. "That's what I like to hear. You know, gramps could use someone like you. He is also trying to change the marines back to how they were before the current administration of the World Government… encouraged them to become what they are today."

"Gramps?" Questioned the orange-haired girl raising an eyebrow at him. "Your grandfather is a member of the marines, and yet you decided to become a pirate? What gives?"

Luffy laughed. "Yeah. Drove him up the wall every time I told him I wanted to become one. I think it was the reason why his training consisted of pummeling me and my brothers, who also wanted to become pirates, to the ground using his patented 'Fist of love,' throwing me off cliffs, tying me to flying balloons, and leaving me for months to survive in a jungle with only the clothes I was wearing," he said before laughing again.

"What kind of grandfather does that…"

"Wait for a second… your name is Monkey D. Luffy… and your grandfather is on the marines…" As Coby trailed off, Luffy grinned as realization slowly settled in him and laughed at the absolutely shocked expression on his face as he pointed a shaky finger in Luffy's direction. "You… you… you are the grandson of the Monkey D. Garp, the hero of the marines?!" He screeched.

Even as the orange-haired girl also began to gape at him, Luffy simply nodded. "Yup. That's him. The craziest and most sadistic old man if you'll ever see. Love him to death, though," said Luffy with a shrug. All those memories and the people in it were a part of him now. He then turned towards the orange-haired girl and peered at her curiously. "I never caught your name now that I think about it."

"It's… Nami…" she said weakly as she tried to wrap her head around the craziness that was now surrounding her after meeting this man.

"Nami, huh? That's a cute name," Luffy grinned at her and laughed as she blushed and looked away, mumbling something that he couldn't quite catch.

"Since we are going to the shell town... can you tell me what your's plan?"

Feeling oddly comfortable around him, which had nothing to do with the fact that the first compliment he had given her had been about her name instead of a physical aspect of her, Nami nodded. "I am a thief, you see. Marine bases have a lot of money lying around if someone goes there to cash in a bounty. Also, there is a rumor that they have a map on how to get to the Grand Line there."

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