Chapter 5

As the battle with the Buggy Pirates came to its end, my hunger finally caught up with me, my stomach grumbling loudly in protest for being ignored throughout the entire day. I let out a groan of discomfort as I placed a hand on my stomach, feeling the emptiness within.

"Wow, that was exhausting," Nami exclaimed as she finally made her way over to us, her treasure bag filled with glittering jewels and gold coins clanking with every step she took. She dropped the heavy bag with a thud, taking a seat next to us with a sigh of relief, her muscles fatigued from carrying such a large amount of treasure.

"Thanks for earlier," Nami said, panting heavily as she sank down next to us, her treasure bag still clutched in her hand. The clinking of gold and jewels could be heard as she shifted the weight of the bag, emphasizing the fatigue she was feeling from hauling such a heavy load. "My name is Nami," she introduced herself, wiping sweat from her forehead.

"Cole," I responded, my tone dismissive as my thoughts were consumed with the gnawing hunger in my gut, my mouth watering at the mere thought of satisfying my hunger with a hearty meal.

Luffy, who had been joyously reveling in his triumph, suddenly halted his celebration as his gaze fell upon his tattered and pierced straw hat, which had clearly seen better days. As I caught Luffy's eye, Nami noticed the subtle sadness etched on his face.

"I can fix it for you if you want?" Nami offered kindly, eager to assist the pirate who had saved the town.

Luffy's face lit up with excitement as he exclaimed, "Really!? Thank you so much, I knew you were a good person." His previous gloomy mood instantly dissipated, replaced with gratitude and joy.

"You're gonna have to help carry this treasure though, I'll split it into two halves, one for me and the other for you guys," Nami declared as she gestured towards the large bag of loot at her feet.

"And where is my share in all of this?" I questioned, feeling slighted as she had not included me in her initial distribution plan.

"Aren't you part of their crew?" she asked, confusion etched on her features.

"Am I?" I asked, my tone uncertain as I had yet to be formally offered a spot on the crew.

Luffy surveyed me with a curious expression, his lips pressed together in a thoughtful frown as he cocked his head to the side, as if trying to place me in his mind. He then suddenly crouched down next to the sleeping Zoro and began smacking him in the face, shouting "Oi! Zoro! Wake up!"

Zoro groggily stirred from his slumber, rubbing his eyes as he took in the scene around him. "Did we win?" He asked, to which Luffy let out an ear-splitting grin and exclaimed "Yeah!" He then turned to me and asked "But who's this?" pointing in my direction.

"Oh, he's Cole," Zoro replied groggily, his speech still slurred from sleep.

"Oh ok," Luffy replied as if the information about my identity was of utmost importance and would greatly aid in his decision-making.

Turning his attention to me, Luffy's eyes brightened with excitement as he asked, "Are you strong?"

I simply nodded, maintaining a stoic expression.

"Great! Then join our crew!" Luffy exclaimed, his signature grin spreading across his face.

"Exactly who makes up this crew of yours?" I enquired.

Luffy gestured towards each member as he named them off, "There's Zoro, Nami, and me," he said confidently, a proud glint in his eye as he gestured towards his comrades.

Nami began to protest, her voice filled with conviction as she stated her position that she was not a member of their crew, but rather a temporary ally. Her disdain for the life of a pirate was evident in her words and body language, as she firmly expressed her rejection of the criminal lifestyle.

But Luffy didn't seem to care much, as he was insistent that she was the Navigator of his crew, despite her protests and clear aversion to the pirate lifestyle. The two of them continued to argue, their voices growing louder and more heated, until my stomach let out another loud growl, interrupting them and drawing their attention to me.

"Let's grab something to eat, shall we?" I asked, trying to hide my embarrassment as my stomach growled loudly once again, breaking the tension in the air and redirecting the conversation.

~~~

As we sat in the dimly lit abandoned building, the sound of our ravenous hunger filled the room as we devoured the food we had scavenged from the nearby houses. The air was thick with the aroma of our feast, and the clinking of utensils against plates added to the symphony of our hunger being satisfied.

We spoke in hushed tones, discussing the events of the day and the distribution of the treasure. Nami was insistent on her proposed two-way split, but I couldn't help but feel greedy for a larger share.

"Guess that still makes it a two split," Nami repeated, her tone indicating her firm stance on the matter.

"I haven't accepted his offer yet," I retorted, my eyes fixated on the pile of treasure in the corner. My desire for a third of the loot was clear in my tone.

As we sat in the dimly lit abandoned building, the remnants of our scavenged feast still scattered on the table in front of us, the sound of a large and growing crowd outside interrupted our discussion on how to split the recently acquired treasure.

A thudding knock on the door echoed through the room, causing all of us to turn our attention towards it. Without hesitation, Luffy strode confidently towards the door, as if he had a rightful claim to the building, and pulled it open to greet the inquisitive mob standing on the other side.

"Who are you people?" A large crowd of villagers, led by their mayor in leather armor and wielding a spear, questioned us.

"Me? I'm Monkey D. Luffy," Luffy replied nonchalantly, as if being questioned by a mob of angry villagers was an everyday occurrence for him.

"You should leave while you can, this town has been attacked by the Buggy pirates," the mayor spoke, eliciting a nod of agreement from the villagers behind him.

With a nonchalant tone, Luffy confidently replied, "Oh don't worry about him, we already took care of it."

The mayor exclaimed in surprise, "Really? Thank god! You must be a bounty hunter," the relief and gratitude evident on his aged face as he smiled, the townspeople behind him erupting in cheers.

Making us all hold our breath in anxiety, the tension palpable as we hoped he wouldn't reveal us as pirates to the villagers.

"Ah no, we're pirates." Luffy said nonchalantly, as if it was no big deal, causing an uproar amongst the villagers.

And just like that, our peace and quiet came to an abrupt end as we frantically gathered our belongings and made a hasty escape, with the villagers led by the mayor hot on our heels. Luffy, however, remained unfazed and even sported a grin on his face as he held his tattered straw hat securely on his head.

"Shishishi! Hey, Cole join my crew?" Luffy demanded more than asked, his eyes sparkling with excitement and mischief.

"Hahaha, why not you rascal!" I replied, my face breaking out into a wide grin as I felt my heart fill with a sense of adventure and camaraderie. Luffy's boundless energy and enthusiasm was infectious, making it impossible to not be swept up in his plans.