"Is fate truly unchangeable?"
Kaito Sakamoto sat on the boat, gazing into the distance with a sigh.
"Hahaha!"
"We didn't expect to get stranded either, Kaito. At least the weather's nice right now," Luffy said with a grin. "Even though that massive whirlpool is terrifying, we're both Devil Fruit users… and neither of us can swim."
"There's no one around here either, so no chance for rescue," Kaito added, looking unconvinced. He patted Luffy on the shoulder and, as soon as Luffy turned around, promptly stuffed him into a barrel.
When he'd seen the two barrels in the ship's storage, Kaito had a feeling that fate was inescapable.
"Every man for himself! Remember to come find me, Luffy!"
Without waiting for Luffy to reply, Kaito kicked the barrel overboard, sending it bobbing into the sea. As the boat began to be fully sucked into the whirlpool, Kaito quickly climbed into the remaining barrel himself.
In the next moment, the whirlpool engulfed the fishing boat, and Kaito's barrel tumbled into the sea as well. He felt himself spinning, his world turning upside down, until he finally blacked out.
"Ugh…"
Kaito slowly opened his eyes, finding himself in what seemed like a plaza, surrounded by high walls. He was tied up to a cross-shaped wooden post, almost like a sacrifice.
He looked to his right and caught a glimpse of green. Kaito smiled—so this was how their first meeting was meant to be.
"You look a bit familiar, sir. Have we met before?"
Zoro kept his head down, seemingly not paying Kaito any mind. Undeterred, Kaito smiled and assessed his own situation, noticing that he was quite securely tied up.
"Luffy, you better hurry and rescue me," he muttered, half-jokingly. "My body can't take this kind of punishment."
"Ahh, what a good nap!"
"Huh? What is that?!"
Meanwhile, Luffy's barrel had floated to an island where Alvida's pirate crew had made a stop. A group of her underlings, hoping for a barrel of booze, was startled out of their wits when Luffy popped out instead.
"Who are you guys?" Luffy asked, looking around. "Where's Kaito?"
"Who are you?!" the bewildered lackeys shot back. "And who the heck is Kaito?!"
"No slacking off!" Before Luffy could continue, Alvida herself threw a spiked club, shattering the storage room and sending Luffy tumbling into the forest beyond.
"Are you okay? You got thrown pretty far."
It was none other than Coby, the timid future Marine captain, making his first appearance with an almost comically round face. Although he had yet to undergo his "transformation," he was here, timid and meek as ever.
Coby explained to Luffy that they were on the island where the pirate Alvida had made camp. But Luffy, uninterested in the details, cut him off.
"Do you have a boat I could borrow?"
"We got separated by a whirlpool at sea, and I need to find Kaito," Luffy said.
"A whirlpool?!" Coby was stunned by Luffy's luck, then showed him a small vessel he had secretly spent two years building.
"What is that?" Luffy asked with a raised eyebrow. "A coffin?"
"It's a boat!" Coby protested. "I've been building it for two years, hoping one day I could use it to escape."
"Two years? And now you're just giving it away?" Luffy asked, skeptical of its seaworthiness.
Coby trembled as he remembered Alvida and her fearsome spiked club. "I also have a dream… but just thinking about Alvida makes me too scared to try."
"You really are a coward. I don't like you," Luffy said bluntly, his grin showing no hint of tact.
Coby was visibly hurt but quickly changed the subject. "This… Kaito, is he your friend, Luffy? What are you guys trying to do out here?"
"Me? I'm gonna be the King of the Pirates!" Luffy declared, smiling. His words, despite their simplicity, held a weight that stunned Coby, who warned him that such a dream could lead to death.
Unfazed, Luffy simply knocked him on the head. As Coby reeled from the pain, Luffy removed his straw hat, pressing it to his chest as his eyes grew serious.
"I said I'd be the Pirate King. I'd risk my life to make it happen."
Coby, shaken by Luffy's resolve, felt his own courage begin to spark. "Maybe… maybe I can do it too!"
"I've always wanted to join the Marines and catch bad guys… including Alvida," he said, his voice filled with new determination.
"Alright," Luffy replied nonchalantly.
Just then, Alvida's spiked club came crashing down, missing Coby but sending tremors through the ground.
"Did I hear you right, Coby?" she snarled. "Are you planning to capture me?"
Seeing Luffy, Alvida relaxed, realizing that this unexpected visitor wasn't the infamous Zoro.