Seven years Later,
Foosha Village.
The sky was clear, and the waves danced gently under the morning sun.
Foosha Village was peaceful.
Birds chirped. Kids screamed.
And then—
BWAAAAAAAAA
The horn of a massive pirate ship shattered the calm like Zoro's sense of direction.
Children ran to the cliffside. Villagers peeked out from windows and doorways. A large ship with a bright red sail was approaching. It had a flag with a skull and swords—pirates.
Children screamed with joy this time. Because they all knew—
The Red-Haired Pirates were back.
Among them stood a small boy on a barrel, a plastic sword in hand. Around seven years old. Messy black hair, wide eyes, He was known as Luffy, but some villagers thought he was a little odd. He talked to himself too much and made strange faces when no one was looking.
Luffy stared at the ship. His heart raced for reasons he didn't understand.
> "Why does this feel familiar? Why am I sweating? It's just some random anime pirates—"
The kids shouted, "The Red Force ship is the best, captain shanks is the best"
"Red Force…" he whispered. "Why does that name sound so… familiar?"
As the ship docked, loud cheers followed. Pirates jumped down, laughing and shouting. The leader walked down last. A tall man with red hair, a long coat, and a carefree smile. His eyes held power. His name was—
"Shanks…" Luffy muttered, without meaning to.
He froze.
"Why did I say that…?" he thought, eyes wide. "I don't have anything to do with him, Do I?!"
Shanks looked at the boy and laughed. "Oi, kid! What's your name?"
Luffy's brain screamed at him to say nothing.
To stay quiet.
To stay normal.
But his mouth had other plans.
"I'm Luffy! And I'll become King of the Pirates someday!"
Dead silence.
Even the birds paused.
The villagers blinked. The pirates stopped mid-laugh.
And Reincarnated Luffy?
He mentally short-circuited.
'WHY DID I JUST SAY THAT?! BRO. BRO. I'M NOT EVEN TRYING TO BE HIM RIGHT NOW. I WAS JUST HERE FOR NOODLES. WHAT IS HAPPENING.'
The pirates around him laughed. Shanks raised an eyebrow, amused, and walked closer.
"That so? Got a lot of guts, kid."
Meanwhile, reincarnated Luffy was praying hard,
> 'Please don't give me the hat. Please don't give me the hat. I can't emotionally handle this at seven years old—'
Luffy tried to walk away.
His foot slipped. He faceplanted into the dirt.
> 'Cool. Pirate King moment ruined. Maybe that'll cancel the prophecy.'
"Oi, you okay?" Yassop asked, barely holding in a laugh.
Luffy groaned into the dirt.
> 'No, bro. I'm having an identity crisis. I died, got reincarnated, and now I'm stuck in the body of a shonen MC with no off-switch. I just wanted to be a quiet villager. Maybe open a soba shop. But no—here I am, spouting catchphrases like a walking merchandise slogan.'
Shanks offered a hand.
Luffy took it, reluctantly.
Then muttered under his breath, "Don't give me the hat."
"Hm?" Shanks smiled. "Did you say something?"
Luffy forced a smile.
> 'I said don't give me the hat, Red Starbucks Jesus. Let me live in peace.'
But he didn't say it out loud. Instead, he just nodded.
And deep down, a small voice whispered—
>' You know you're screwed, right? You've officially entered the One Piece plotline. There's no escape.'
Luffy ran.
Shanks chuckled faintly—but his gaze stayed fixed down the road.
"Hm... That fire in his eyes…"
But then he muttered under his breath, more to himself than anyone else, "...Why did it feel like he was running from something?"
Like, sprinted back to his old wooden house at the edge of Foosha Village. Panting, tripping over his tiny legs, he slammed the door shut, dragged a stool against it, stacked some books on the windowsill like a DIY defense system, and finally slumped to the floor.
"I ran like a coward, and I have no regrets."
He peeked over the windowsill again, panting, then dove under the table like a soldier dodging gunfire.
"Okay. Deep breaths. Think. I got this. I'm not gonna be anime-coded. I'm not going down like the original."
He stood up dramatically.
Then dramatically climbed onto a table.
Then dramatically pointed at nothing in particular.
"Operation: Avoid The Plot!"
Because this wasn't just any reincarnation.
This was survival.
"If I don't interfere, I won't eat the Gomu Gomu no Mi. If I don't eat the fruit, I won't become rubber. If I don't become rubber, I won't get kidnapped by that mountain bandit. If I don't get kidnapped, Shanks won't need to save me. If he doesn't save me, HE KEEPS HIS ARM."
He nodded seriously to his imaginary war council—consisting of a half-broken chair, a potato, and a dust bunny he named Commander Paws.
"..."
Plan Breakdown:
Step 1: Do Not Go to Makino's Bar.
He even made a sign:
"No Bar = No Plot"
Taped it to the wall.
"Makino is a nice lady, sure. But also, she's the quest-giver. You talk to her, BOOM, you're in a side quest. Next thing you know, you're stretching like rubber spaghetti and some redhead is crying on the beach."
Step 2: Avoid Shanks. Like. The. Plague.
"I see that man? I run. I hear his laugh? I hide. I smell sake? I dig a hole and bury myself in it."
He even practiced ducking behind trees.
And did stealth rolls across his own floor.
Failed all of them.
Step 3: The Devil Fruit Lockdown.
He drew a map. A treasure map.
But instead of finding treasure, it had a giant red X with "Do NOT touch this!" over the spot where the Gomu Gomu no Mi would end up.
Then drew himself dramatically slapping the fruit out of young Luffy's hand.
His Imaginations Were… Intense.
—He imagined Shanks reaching for the fruit and him bursting in like:
"NOOOOOO!"
Then tackling the fruit midair like a rugby champion.
—He imagined the mountain bandit showing up and Luffy opening a trapdoor under him like:
"Welcome to hell, sir."
—He imagined Shanks about to lose his arm and little Luffy (himself) diving out screaming:
"NOT TODAY, SEA KING!"
Only for a random sea turtle to carry him away.
He clutched his head.
"I need to stay out of everything. I just need to lie low. Be normal. Drink water. Touch grass. Be a peaceful NPC. I can do this. I'm smart. I'm rational."
Then his stomach growled.
" …I'm hungry."
"BUT I CAN'T GO TO MAKINO'S BAR!" he wailed.
"I'll cook something here!"
He looked around.
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
Just dust, a bug, and a single ancient potato with a tiny sprout.
"So I starve… For peace."