Luffy dragged Zoro along and found an inn not far from the harbor. He booked two single rooms and paid for six months in advance.
After all, the money came from Arlong's pirate stash, no reason to be stingy.
The innkeeper, surprisingly, didn't try to cheat Luffy because of his young age. After all, he'd just watched Luffy haul something strange off a large pirate ship like it was nothing.
In a place like this, no innkeeper was a fool.
Luffy casually tossed Zoro into one of the rooms. Then, under the innkeeper's wary yet curious gaze, he pulled out his long-cherished bounty book, opened it, and asked, "Any of these guys around here?"
The innkeeper immediately shook his head.
Even if he did know, he'd never admit it. The next one to lose their head might just be him.
"Sigh, guess I'll have to find them myself."
Luffy stared at each bounty poster, visibly disappointed.
"I gotta hurry. I'm this close to unlocking Conqueror's Haki!"
Just thinking about the cool aura of Conqueror's Haki had Luffy itching to grind more EXP.
Smiling to himself, he opened his stats window, wanting to admire how close he was to breaking through 500 points.
"Mental stat… 476… almost, "
Luffy froze.
He blinked, rubbed his eyes, then looked again.
[Mental: 476]
"System! System! Get out here! What's going on?!"
[Answering host: Zoro's death within his Mental Power space caused a slight mental backlash, delaying your Mental stat growth.
However, rest assured this will not cause permanent harm. He will fully recover within a year and grow even stronger.]
Pffft!
Luffy practically coughed up blood internally.
Zoro, oh Zoro, why do you always have to cause trouble at the worst times?! I'm this close to unlocking Conqueror's Haki, and now this?
He checked Zoro's stat panel, sure enough, the daily increase in Mental had dropped significantly.
"Are you sure this won't be a problem?" Luffy asked again, frowning.
[Please rest assured, this will ultimately accelerate Zoro's growth.]
"Well… okay then. Sigh."
Looks like unlocking Conqueror's Haki at Level 17 will have to wait. Luffy's previously excited mood cooled a few degrees.
"It's not that bad, I guess…
Just gotta wait a bit longer…
Whatever… still sucks though."
He wandered the streets, heart heavy with disappointment.
He was headed to the Marine base to check for updated bounty posters, the ones he had were outdated. Luffy didn't believe those weaklings could survive for long, so staying current was key.
The Marine base was on the outskirts of town.
As he walked, the crowds thinned. Fewer people, quieter streets.
"…Hm?"
Luffy suddenly noticed something, he was being followed.
Interesting, he smirked.
Anyone tailing him was either suspicious of his unusual behavior… or a human trafficker.
There weren't any real powerhouses in this town, so those two behind him had to be slavers.
He'd been bummed about his stat delay, but now he had something fun to play with.
Pretending not to notice, Luffy changed direction, turning into a quiet, empty alley instead of heading to the Marine base.
He slowed his pace, grumbling internally: Come on, you two idiots. The street's completely empty. Still not making a move?
Moments later, they finally did.
One guy rushed up and clamped a cloth over Luffy's mouth and nose, scooping him up in one fluid motion.
The other quickly opened a large snakeskin bag, stuffed Luffy inside, slung it over his shoulder, and started running.
Their teamwork was flawless. Clearly not their first time doing this.
Inside the bag, Luffy spat out the cloth. It had a strange anesthetic smell, probably some kind of knockout drug.
Too bad for them, it didn't work at all on Luffy's body.
He lay quietly, listening as the traffickers chatted.
"This makes six in this batch, right?"
"Yep! The boss is gonna love us. We're definitely getting rewarded."
"Once we've made enough, we'll buy a ship and go look for the Pirate King's treasure!"
"Gotta get a big one. Sail it home, show everyone in the village!"
Luffy listened to their wild dreams with mild amusement.
About half an hour later, they arrived, presumably at the traffickers' hideout.
He heard a strange knocking pattern, probably a secret code.
Creak.
A door opened.
"You got goods?"
"Yep. Fresh one."
Without another word, the gatekeeper let them in.
Luffy felt them descend a flight of stairs. It seemed like an underground base.
Eventually, they set the bag down and opened it.
Luffy poked his head out.
"He's awake? Did you not use enough drug?" one asked, confused.
"No way! I even used more than usual!"
"…Whatever. Doesn't matter."
They grabbed Luffy by the collar and tossed him into an iron cage.
Inside were five other kids, two boys and three girls, all around five years old, dazed and sluggish from drugs.
Looking around, Luffy counted more than a dozen similar cages. Each held at least one child.
"Done yet?" came the gatekeeper's voice.
"Yeah, all set," they replied.
"Then hurry to the main hall. We're having a meeting today."
"Oh, right. On our way!"
The two traffickers tidied up their tools and left.
Once the room quieted down, Luffy put both hands on the cage bars and gently twisted, creating an opening just big enough for him to slip through.
Exiting the warehouse, he heard muffled voices from a distance.
Perking his ears, he pinpointed their location and walked toward them.
As he got closer, the voices became clearer.
"We need to lie low for now. My intel says the Marines are cracking down on small-time gangs like ours. Once we offload this batch, we'll run cargo for a while, keep it legal."
"But boss," someone said, "we're just pickpockets and thieves. We don't know how to run legit business…"
"Idiot! I said we're laying low. Don't invite trouble!"
"Boss, maybe you could give me the buyer's contact? I'll take a few guys and keep this going while you lay low," another voice piped up, sharp and smooth.
The boss growled, "Sounds to me like you want to split off and go solo."
"Not at all, boss," the sharp voice replied. "It's just… the guys are used to the easy profits. If we stop cold, they might complain."
BANG!
The boss slammed his fist into the wall.
"Calm down, boss. Oh, right, I almost forgot the introductions," the sharp-voiced man said.
He gestured to a hulking man beside him. "This is Bob the Butcher. Say hi, everyone."
At the mention of "Bob," the boss visibly paled.
Bob stood slowly.
The sharp-voiced man continued, "Brother Bob here's a pirate with a five million bounty. He's looking to earn some quick cash. When he heard about our business, he offered to be our guarantor. Go ahead, Bob, say a few words."
"Ugh… ugh…"
Thud.
Bob collapsed.
Behind him stood a small boy, his right hand dripping with blood.
"Why not let me say a few words instead?" Luffy asked with a sweet smile.
Some time later,
Luffy walked out of the slavers' hideout and made his way to the Marine base.
He told an officer everything.
Though skeptical at first, the Marine remembered recent orders about cracking down on traffickers and decided to investigate.
What he found shocked him: over thirty corpses in the main hall, and dozens of missing children rescued from underground cages.
From that day on, Luffy's name was firmly etched in the minds of Loguetown's Marines.
As word spread, more and more people came to fear the title "Demon Kid Luffy."
Rumor had it that once he set his sights on someone… they wouldn't live to see the next sunrise.
In a matter of days, Loguetown's underworld vanished.
Even pirates bound for the Grand Line began avoiding the port altogether.
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Note: For those wondering, any unfamiliar pirate names or crews mentioned are fan-made (not canon). They're created purely so Luffy can beat them up and farm some XP!
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