Chapter 8 - Shirahoshi.

[Tamanho do Capítulo: 2976 Palavras.]

Monkey D. Luffy's POV

Beach near Shell City, East Blue.

...

...

[Open summoning card?]

[Yes]/[No]

"Yes!"

[Think about who you want to summon!]

"Come, Shirahoshi!"

The light appeared once again, this time in the middle of the beach's water.

"AHHHH!!!!" Luffy could hear the startled scream of a frightened young woman.

"SHARKY!!!!" Another strange sound came from the light, if Luffy wasn't mistaken, that was the noise Megalo made in the original work.

"Hmm? What's happening, Megalo? Why is everything suddenly glowing?!" Luffy heard the frightened voice of the same young woman in the midst of the light, as she questioned what was happening.

"SHARKY SHARKY SHARKY!" Megalo spoke with his strange voice as if the animal was grumbling. The light field wasn't small like the others; it covered a giant area this time.

When the light disappeared, a giant mermaid appeared in front of Luffy, her tail thrashing in the water with excitement. She had bubblegum pink hair and wore a seashell bikini.

Her sight was matched by another huge shark wearing a red shirt, even bigger than the mermaid! Both of them had a soap bubble float around their waists, allowing them to float and swim with ease.

"WHAT IS THIS!!!!!"

"A MERMAID!"

"SO BIG!!"

Luffy heard three startled voices coming from the beach. Kuina, Bepo, and Yamato couldn't help but be surprised by the sudden appearance of Shirahoshi in the middle of the sea.

"Hmm? Why am I seeing the sun? Am I breathing surface oxygen? Where am I?" She asked with a teary and frightened voice, quickly looking around.

"SHARKY SHARKY SHARKY!" Even her shark was agitated and scared. He seemed to be suffering from not being in the water, but Luffy knew from the original work that he could breathe oxygen. Nevertheless, he couldn't help but find his reaction hilarious.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA! Hello, mermaid princess and you, shark, can you breathe!!" Luffy opened a smile after laughing and greeted the girl excitedly, catching their attention.

"Sharky!" Megalo seemed relieved by the reminder of this strange human and began to breathe the oxygen calmly now.

"Hmmm? A human?! Who are you, Mr. Human?" She asked cautiously and quite frightened.

"Princess mermaid, I am Monkey D. Luffy, a pirate!" Luffy introduced himself with the same smile.

"A pirate!!!" She became even more frightened, ready to cry and run.

"I brought you from the Fish-Man Island, princess, because I know you need my help! But this is strange; seeing you here, you look older than I imagined. I thought you would be much younger. How old are you?" Luffy asked curiously because she shouldn't have this appearance at this time.

"What do you mean I need your help, Mr. Human? I'm 18 years old," she said cautiously, wondering how Luffy would help her and why he had brought her here. Now he was asking about her age.

"18 years old?! Well, that's unexpected, as she should be 14 at this time. At least I'm not kidnapping someone underage..." Luffy sighed with relief. He found the change strange but also pleasant, as the girl was even more beautiful than he remembered, just as beautiful as Yamato!

"Hmmm.... Luffy-Sama, how can you help me?" Seeing the human murmuring to himself, she asked again with a curious tone, but still very cautious in her question. She was quite frightened, having been in her room reading some books with Megalo, and then suddenly finding herself here. As much as she wanted to look at this place on the surface, she was still concerned about why she ended up here with this human.

Luffy heard the question but had other thoughts on his mind before answering. In addition to the altered age of the mermaid princess, he realized that this world had other differences from the original. He noticed that Lami was a female version of Law, and now Shirahoshi was older than she should be.

"Could it be that by changing Luffy, the fate of this world has also changed? Since the original Luffy should be the protagonist, there have been changes that will alter reality! For example, this mermaid is older than she should be, so she can be stronger in the future events. With me here, perhaps the world understands that I won't save Fish-Man Island, so it's like they've been preparing her for it, and it will indeed happen, as I intend to train her for it," Luffy reflected mentally on this.

"Well, let's get down to it. I summoned you to help because, first, your kingdom is in great danger in the coming years!" I said, and she widened her eyes with some realization.

"The island of the tritons is in danger?! So it's true!" She said, worried to the point of almost crying at this information, even her shark tried to console her beside her.

"Yes, that's why I brought you here. I'm going to help you save your kingdom," I said, speaking the truth now. Shirahoshi is an ancient weapon, Poseidon, but she was not powerful at all when I saw her in the anime. I want to recruit her and make her so strong that she can protect her country with her own hands.

"But I'm weak!" Shirahoshi said, forgetting the fact that she appeared here out of nowhere as if she had been kidnapped.

"Yes, you are weak and crybaby," I said without caring about hurting her feelings.

"I'm weak and a crybaby? Waaaah!" She started crying immediately.

"SHARKY SHARKY SHARKY!" Megalo started protesting on the side with my words.

"But I can make you strong and brave!" I said with an enthusiastic smile.

"Hmm? What did you say?" She asked, stopping her tears immediately and looking at me wondering what she heard.

"Join me, and I'll make you the most powerful princess in the world. You can also fulfill your mother's wish! I intend to help you with that," I said to her.

"My mother's wish? Can I really do that?" She asked incredulously.

"Yes, I will help you make it come true. I believe you can do it! You can make your people coexist with the surface, that's what I believe!" Luffy had a charismatic tone, believing that he could bring this princess under his wing and make her strong enough to achieve her goals.

He wasn't interested in this princess as a woman; she had such a young mindset since she had been locked up in her room for years. But he could make her one of the most powerful people in the world on his ship. However, he couldn't deny that she was exceptionally beautiful, as he had seen in Yamato.

"Do you think I can be as strong as my mother? But I can't even leave my room?" She said, lamenting.

"Look around, Princess. You're in the East Blue now. No one will hurt you while I'm here. That Vander Decken IX who threatened you can't even send flying objects at you anymore. His fruit's effect was canceled thanks to this summoning!" I said, trying to reassure her.

"Really? But my dad and my brothers will be worried!" She nearly cried at this moment again.

"Don't worry. As long as you're away from them, you will become strong enough to protect all the people of your island and your family. Don't you want to be strong enough to protect them, both your family and your people? I believe you're the only one who can lead your people to live on the surface. Jimbei may be a Warlord for the government, but he will never be able to achieve this. But in you, I believe," Luffy gave his speech, saying everything he thought and planned and anticipated her response.

"I... I want to be strong! I want to do what you're talking about, Luffy-Sama," she said, a bit sad, and continued.

"But... But I..." She was about to cry at that moment.

Luffy interrupted her before she could continue.

"You are the hope to fulfill what your mother couldn't, Shirahoshi. You are the future ruler of the fish-men, and only you can lead them in this approaching new era, which is full of chaos! Luffy spoke with conviction.

"But my brothers should take the throne!" She quickly protested, not wanting to take her older brothers' birthright.

"No, they are the sons of Neptune, indeed. But besides you, there is no one with the ability to raise the fish-men to a better future. As I said, your people are in great danger. Your brothers must understand that even though they are older, you were born with the birthright to rule not only the fish-men but all marine life. Never forget that, Princess," Luffy said with conviction.

If not Poseidon, then who? He hadn't seen the final outcome of the original work, but surely Shirahoshi had a significant role in it. He never believed that the original Luffy could fight the World Government on his own with his crew, so he had been acquiring powerful allies throughout his journey. And this mermaid was one of them since she possessed a power that could potentially destroy the world.

"I was born to rule over marine life?" She couldn't help but be skeptical of these words.

"Sharky Sharky," Megalo murmured on the side.

"Yes, I believe it. You will become strong enough to save your family, your people, and elevate your race to the surface, something your mother couldn't achieve," Luffy said.

"Hmm... If Luffy-Sama says Shirahoshi can be strong and brave, then Shirahoshi believes in Luffy-Sama!" She finally said after some time of wrestling with herself as she tried to refute.

"Well, that was too easy..." Luffy couldn't help but think that, because the mermaid in front of him should be frightened and ready to run to the sea, not that he didn't appreciate it, but there had to be something else he overlooked.

"Wait, why do you believe me so easily? Like, not that I don't like it, but I'm a human who took you from the Fish-Man Island! You shouldn't be scared?" Luffy questioned; he couldn't help but ask. But then he remembered something.

'Island of the Tritons is in danger?! So it's true!' Shirahoshi's words resurfaced in his mind.

"Wait, what did you say before? Did you already know that Fish-Man Island is in danger?" Luffy asked, and he saw a conflicted look on her face.

"Hmmmmm... A few years ago, Madame Shirley came to the palace to warn my dad about a vision of the future," she seemed uncertain and continued.

"In the vision, a human would take me away and help me move and see the real world before I return to my kingdom... when the island needs me the most... I don't know much... but my dad refused to that, and I've had enhanced security for years, and he never let humans enter the palace except for Whitebeard's crew." Shirahoshi said with a softer tone and continued.

"In the end, I've always waited for this human. I've always wanted to see the surface, but I never expected it to happen like this. So I believe Luffy-Sama's words. I believe he's the human in Madame Shirley's vision!"

[Crew: Shirahoshi joined as a crew member!]

A screen appeared in front of Luffy.

"My second crew member!" He exclaimed inwardly.

"That's so unexpected, but you can be sure that this vision is real, and I have good intentions for you, Princess," Luffy said, analyzing everything Shirahoshi had said. He was happy that a prophecy from that woman had helped him even before he entered this world.

"I'm very happy to have you on the crew, Princess. Let's work together in the future, and welcome!" He said with a big smile, and she responded with another timid smile, happier than she had been before.

"First of all, let me adjust your size. I'm sure the news of the princess mermaid's disappearance from the palace will be heard soon in many parts of the world. So I need to disguise you a bit, at least in terms of size, to help hide your identity a little." I murmured as I approached her.

"Shirahoshi! Give me your hand!" I said, and she calmly placed her hand in my direction.

When her hand was close enough, I put my palm on it and used my power within my capabilities.

[Moa Moa no Mi: Mass, apply 0.1 times!]

By multiplying by zero in front or below 1, I can reverse the effects within my capabilities, making my power even more versatile and useful!

Shirahoshi, who felt my touch, soon noticed the changes in her body, which was rapidly shrinking.

"Luffy-Sama, what's happening?" She cried out in fear.

"SHARKY SHARKY SHARKY!" Even Megalo was frightened, watching his friend's transformation.

Shirahoshi was shrinking at that moment, and I didn't say anything until she reached 17 meters, to 1.70 meters, 40 centimeters shorter than me, while the girl was stunned in front of me. I was satisfied with the result.

"Sorry for this repeating, but I reduced your size to avoid attracting too much attention," I said.

"You've gotten so big, Luffy-Sama!" She was immediately startled by this, and Luffy laughed at her reaction.

"Hahaha, of course not. Now let's do the same with Megalo." I said, turning to the shark, who was a bit cautious.

"SHARKY SHARKY SHARKY!" He clearly didn't want it.

"Sorry, buddy, but you can't stay with us at this size." I said and touched him, making him as small as Shirahoshi.

"Don't worry, Princess. This effect isn't permanent, but it will be good for you to get on our ship," I said, trying to reassure the still frightened princess.

"Hmm, I guess so, Luffy-Sama..." She said a little sadly and continued.

"Now, come with me. I want to introduce you to the other girls!" I said, returning to the beach. As Shirahoshi followed me, she was accompanied by her shark, who floated with a soap bubble around their waists. For the first time, she looked at her surroundings and was fascinated by the new sights in her life.

"Is this the sun? It's so warm!" She said as she followed Luffy to the beach.

"Is this a forest? It's green! I've never seen one before!"

"Is this sand? Are those birds flying near the sun? Is that a human city? It looks so different from the Fish-Man Island!"

Luffy couldn't help but smile at the young woman seeing so many new things in her life for the first time.

"How's Lami?" I asked when I reached the girls and the bear. While Lami was a bit bandaged, Bepo had adhesive bandages in his pocket for some bizarre reason.

"She's fine..." Kuina said.

"But I still think she needs more bandages!" Yamato couldn't help but comment in a silly tone.

"Do you want to turn the captain into a mummy?" Everyone looked at Bepo, who had an unexpected outburst of anger.

"Hmm?! I'm sorry!" The bear quickly apologized, embarrassed by the attention.

"What a funny bear!" Yamato said with a smile, not caring that he had just yelled at her a moment ago.

Kuina sighed; she had never seen such peculiar characters in her life. Even though she remembered meeting Zoro, he wasn't as quirky as Yamato, Bepo, and even Luffy. Moreover, she couldn't ignore the fact that Luffy was coming with a mermaid who had been gigantic until recently, followed by a shark wearing a T-shirt that didn't seem to need to breathe water and floated in the air like the mermaid.

"Hmm... What happened to her, Luffy-Sama?" Shirahoshi, seeing the small injured human lying on the sand, couldn't help but ask, worried.

"Hmm... She slipped and fell," Luffy said, scratching his head, because how could he say that he had punched the woman for cutting a piece of his hat just a while ago? He was sure she would cry and run away, saying he was a monster.

"She slipped and fell?!?" Both Bepo and Kuina yelled indignantly, knowing the real reason for Lami being in that condition.

"That's funny. She fell pretty badly to have broken six rib bones and dislocated an arm and a leg!" Yamato smiled, speaking these words calmly, while Shirahoshi put her hand on her mouth in concern. Kuina, Bepo, and even Luffy looked at Yamato strangely because she had believed Luffy's words and said it so strangely.

"In any case, you stay here for now to take care of Lami, because I want to talk to her when she wakes up. Meanwhile, I'll go get my first swordsman for the crew and the third member!" He said as the first swordsman, with a smile, because Kuina hadn't joined yet.

"But before I go, take this." He handed a set of clothes he had just bought in the system's store to Kuina, who was still wearing only the cloak from before, and a dress for Shirahoshi to help her conceal her tail, which was quite conspicuous on its own.

Then, in front of a group consisting of a passed-out person, a human, a bear, a mermaid, a shark, and a dragon-woman? Luffy wasn't quite sure of Kaido's genetic makeup, setting aside those thoughts, the group saw Luffy's transformation. His hair started growing again, with huge wings appearing behind him soon after.

"What is this!?"

"My Toki is amazing!" Everyone looked strangely at Yamato at that moment, wondering why she called me that and referred to me with a female name, not to mention the strange stars in place of her eyes.

"Fantastic! I'm sorry!"

"Luffy-Sama is amazing!"

"SHARKY SHARKY!"

So, without wasting any more time, Luffy took off into the air, lifting some of the beach sand in front of the group, and headed towards Shell City.

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