The morning sea breeze carried a slightly chilly moisture, sweeping across the small pier of Windmill Village.
The massive figure of the Red Force was anchored in the deep water area, and the members of the Red Hair Pirates were making their final preparations.
Mooring lines were reeled in, sails adjusted, and laughter and shouts echoed across the sea—this was a group of men about to return to the Grand Line, their relaxed demeanor carrying an undisguised excitement.
Luna stood at the end of the pier’s jetty, watching the familiar figures board the ship one by one.
Yasopp waved vigorously at her, Lucky Roux grinned while gnawing on a chicken leg, and Benn Beckman nodded at her with a rare gentleness in his eyes.
After more than a year of getting along, these heroes of the great seas had long since regarded this special little girl as one of their own.
Makino stood behind Luna, holding a small package in her hands, her eyes slightly red, “These are the clothes and dry rations I prepared for you…
Take good care of yourself, Luna.
But you are only five years old, are you really going out to sea alone?”
Luna took the package, looked up at the gentle woman who had taken care of her for so long, and said seriously, “I will come back to see you, Big Sister Makino.
When I get my own ship, I will take you out to sea to play.”
Makino broke into a smile through her tears and ruffled Luna’s hair, “It is a deal, then.”
Shanks walked over from the direction of the bar as the last one.
He did not carry much luggage, with Gryphon hanging at his waist, his cape flapping loudly in the sea breeze.
He stopped in front of Luna, squatted down, and brought his line of sight level with hers.
The pier quieted down, leaving only the sound of waves gently lapping against the shore.
“Are you going to become a pirate?” Shanks asked, his voice calm yet carrying a certain weight.
Luna looked straight into his dark red eyes without hesitation, “Yes.”
“Then what kind of pirate do you want to be?” Shanks’s eyes narrowed slightly, as if examining her, yet also filled with anticipation, “The Pirate King?”
This question made the surrounding members of the Red Hair Pirates all look over.
The Pirate King—that ultimate title pursued openly or secretly by everyone who went out to sea, the One Piece left behind by Captain Roger, the most intense competition of the new era.
They wanted to know what kind of answer this girl—who had eaten ‘that fruit’, awakened Haoshoku, and was so highly regarded by the captain—would give.
Luna tilted her head, her pitch-black long hair blown by the sea breeze.
Her face showed a unique expression mixed with calmness and recklessness—her eyebrows slightly raised, her gaze clear, yet the corners of her mouth carrying a hint of almost naive straightforwardness.
“Not very interested,” she said, her voice crisp, “My only pursuit is to recruit as many beautiful female crew members as possible onto the ship.”
A brief silence.
Then—
“Pfft—hahahahaha!!!”
Shanks burst into earth-shattering laughter, laughing so hard he rocked back and forth, almost falling onto the pier.
Not just him, the entire Red Hair Pirates were laughing wildly.
Yasopp laughed so hard he slapped his thighs, Lucky Roux almost choked, and even the usually steady Beckman could not help turning his head away, his shoulders shaking slightly.
“Beautiful crew members!
Hahaha!
Good!
This goal is good!” Shanks wiped away the tears from laughing, “Much more practical than some ‘Pirate King’!
At least you can see and touch them!”
Luna watched them laugh without getting angry; instead, she grinned along.
What she said was from the bottom of her heart—when reading manga in her past life, she had always had a great fondness for those distinctive and charismatic female characters.
Now that she had become Luffy (gender-bent version), this goal naturally had to be placed first.
As for the Pirate King?
That was just a byproduct of the process of becoming stronger, not the ultimate goal.
Having laughed enough, Shanks slowly stopped his laughter.
He looked at Luna, his gaze turning deep and complex.
This girl possessed the aptitude of a king yet held the most ‘vulgar’ goal; she had a well-thought-out mind yet always expressed it in the most reckless manner; she clearly could have spoken a ‘greater’ oath, yet chose the most down-to-earth desire.
But perhaps…
this was the truest form?
Shanks reached out and took off the straw hat from his head.
It was a very ordinary straw hat, woven from wheat straw, with slightly worn edges and a straw-woven strap tied under the chin.
Yet it was extremely extraordinary—it had once been Captain Roger’s hat, later passed on to him, accompanying him through countless storms.
“Luna,” Shanks’s voice suddenly turned solemn.
Holding the straw hat in one hand, slowly and earnestly, he placed it on Luna’s head.
The straw hat was still a bit large for her current head size, the brim slightly shading her eyes.
Shanks carefully adjusted the length of the strap, tied a knot, and let the hat rest steadily on her black hair.
“This hat is my most important treasure,” Shanks said, his fingers gently brushing across the edge of the straw hat, “Now, I entrust it to you.”
Luna froze.
She could feel the rough texture of the straw hat and smell the scent of sea breeze and sunshine clinging to it.
She was extremely familiar with this scene in the original work, but when experiencing it firsthand, that heavy sense of weight far exceeded imagination—this was not an ordinary hat, but the handover of an era and the entrustment of expectations.
“When I get a proper pirate crew and become a captain who will not shame you…” Luna raised her head, her eyes beneath the brim shining astonishingly bright, “I will return it to you.”
Shanks smiled.
In that smile, there was gratification, anticipation, and the reluctance and pride of letting a fledgling leave the nest.
He stood straight and patted Luna’s shoulder, the force very light, yet it felt as if all his blessings were being patted into her bones.
“Then, farewell, Luna.”
“Farewell, Shanks.”
Without further goodbyes, Shanks turned around and strode toward the lowered gangway of the Red Force.
He boarded the ship, stood by the rail, and waved at the pier one last time.
The anchor chains were reeled in, the sails billowed out, and the huge pirate ship slowly turned its bow, leaving the pier and heading toward the vast open sea.
The members of the Red Hair Pirates gathered at the stern, waving goodbye to Luna and Makino.
Their figures gradually shrank in the morning light, finally turning into a tiny black speck on the horizon, disappearing into the sky.
Luna stood at the pier for a long time without moving.
The sea breeze blew the straw hat on her head, its strap gently patting her cheek.
She reached out to hold the brim, feeling that weight.
Makino walked gently to her side, “Reluctant to see them go?”
“A little,” Luna said honestly, “but more than that, I am excited.”
She turned around, looking at Makino with an unquestionable flame burning in her eyes, “I need to start preparing.
Shanks is right; the East Blue is too small.
But to enter the Grand Line, I still need a ship, I need more strength, I need—”
She paused, the corners of her mouth curling into a brilliant yet slightly mischievous arc, “I need to find the first female crew member.”
Makino was torn between laughter and tears, “You really are…
obsessed with this, huh.”
“Life has to have some pursuits, after all,” Luna said righteously.
Then, remembering something, her expression turned slightly more serious, “However, before that, I need to solve a few practical problems first.”
She walked back to the village.
Instead of returning directly to the bar, she went to an open space behind the village.
Piled here were the’spoils of war’ she had accumulated from hunting over the past few months—processed animal skins, well-preserved bones and sharp teeth of ferocious beasts, as well as weapons and miscellaneous valuables ‘confiscated’ from the bandits (with Shanks’s tacit approval).
Nearby were various supplies she had quietly prepared using a portion of that three million Berries, with the help of Makino and the villagers: sturdy ropes, waterproof tarpaulins, basic timber and tools, a large amount of dry rations and fresh water…
Luna took stock of these items, her brain spinning rapidly.
A ship came first.
It was impossible for her to set sail on a small wooden raft right from the beginning like the original Luffy—not to mention the danger, it was far too shabby; how could she attract female crew members?
But she could not afford a proper pirate ship right now either; the compromise solution was…
Her gaze fell on the repaired and modified bandit boat in the center of the open space.
This was left behind by Higuma’s gang, originally only able to hold a dozen people.
Through her reinforcement and modification over the past few months, she had installed a sturdier keel, expanded the storage space, and even made a simple cabin.
Although it was still small, it could at least handle coastal navigation.
“Let us make do with this for now,” Luna patted the hull, “Once I get my first companion, I will rob—ahem, replace it with a bigger one.”