One Piece: The Template System

The feast concluded, leaving the small shack quiet except for the sound of satisfied breathing.

Leaning back against the wooden wall, Otama patted her perfectly round stomach. A content, sleepy smile rested on her face. Sitting across from her, Tenguyama Hitetsu set down an empty bowl. Accepting the remaining stew from Bonney, the masked man had finally eaten his fill, wiping a stray drop of broth from his chin.

Clearing his throat, Hitetsu crossed his arms and looked at the two pirates.

"The food was appreciated," Hitetsu stated, his voice returning to its usual stern tone. "But what is your plan now? Wano is a dangerous place for outsiders."

Picking his teeth with a small wooden splinter, Luffy answered casually. "We are going to meet up with our crew. Then, we will attack Kaido."

Silence fell over the room.

Staring blankly at the boy wearing a straw hat, Hitetsu waited for the rest of the explanation. When none came, the masked man leaned forward, skepticism radiating from his posture.

"Please tell me the plan is not as simple as that," Hitetsu requested quietly.

Flashing a bright, wide smile, the captain nodded. "It is!"

Thick, jagged black lines appeared across Hitetsu's forehead. Grabbing his own mask in frustration, the swordsmith groaned loudly. "You fools! Kaido is a monster! He commands a massive army of beasts! If you just walk up to him, he will kill you instantly!"

Waving a hand dismissively, Luffy remained unbothered. "Don't worry about it. I have fought my grandpa and survived. I can take care of a big guy with horns."

Stopping his frantic pacing, Hitetsu stared at the pirate. "Fighting your grandfather and defeating an Emperor of the Sea are not the same thing, boy."

Nodding slowly, Luffy wore a look of understanding.

Seeing the captain apparently register the logic, Hitetsu released a heavy sigh of relief.

Sitting next to the fire pit, Bonney clamped both hands over her mouth. Her shoulders shook violently as she held back a massive burst of laughter. Knowing the identity of Monkey D. Garp, the pink-haired pirate fully understood the comparison. Surviving a brawl with the Marine Hero easily equaled surviving an encounter with an Emperor, but explaining that to the local swordsmith felt like a waste of time.

Standing up, Luffy dusted off his shorts. "Well, it is time for us to go."

"Wait," Hitetsu commanded, holding up a hand. "You cannot walk outside wearing those clothes. You will draw the attention of Kaido's patrols immediately. You must blend in."

Walking over to a worn wooden chest in the corner of the room, the masked man rummaged through folded fabrics. Pulling out two simple garments, he tossed them across the floor mats.

Taking the offered clothes, the two pirates changed quickly behind a woven bamboo screen.

Stepping back out, their appearances matched the locals. Luffy now wore a simple, light red kimono patched at the seams, tying a standard sash around his waist. Bonney wore a light pink kimono, folding the sleeves up to free her arms for movement.

"Much better," Hitetsu approved, sitting back down.

Walking toward the doorway, Luffy suddenly stopped and snapped his fingers.

Placing his fingers between his lips, the captain blew a sharp, high-pitched note.

The sound carried through the open door, echoing across the desolate bamboo grove.

A few seconds passed. A rushing wind disturbed the dry leaves outside the shack. Streaking down from the gray sky, a fluffy, bright yellow nimbus cloud flew directly toward the doorway. Halting abruptly in the air, the magical cloud hovered inches above the dirt path, waiting patiently.

Stepping out of the shack, Luffy jumped onto the yellow fluff. The cloud supported his weight perfectly. Bonney followed, stepping onto the back half of the nimbus and sitting down comfortably.

Standing in the doorway, Otama gasped. Her eyes widened, staring at the floating piece of weather.

Fidgeting with her fingers, the little girl looked up at the captain. "Can... can I come on the cloud too?"

Smiling brightly, Luffy stretched his rubber arm downward. Wrapping his hand around her waist, he pulled the girl upward, dropping her safely onto the soft yellow surface between himself and Bonney.

"Wait!" Hitetsu shouted, running toward the door. "Otama, stay here! It is not safe!"

The warning came too late.

Leaning forward, Luffy gave the command. The nimbus cloud shot into the sky like a rocket, leaving the masked man standing in the dust, shouting at the empty air.

Soaring high above the desolate wasteland, the wind whipped through their hair.

Clinging to Luffy's red kimono, Otama let out a loud, joyous exclamation. Looking down at the passing factories and polluted rivers, the fear of the height vanished, replaced by the thrill of flight.

"This is amazing!" the girl cheered, patting the soft yellow material beneath her knees.

Sitting behind her, Bonney shielded her eyes from the wind. "Ben makes useful toys."

Turning around slightly, Luffy looked at their young passenger. "Do you have magic clouds in Wano?"

"No," Otama laughed, shaking her head. "But I have magic too! I can make Kibi Dango from my cheeks." Pinching her own cheek, she demonstrated the motion, though no food appeared. "If I feed the dango to an animal, they become my friend and listen to my commands. I have a giant dog named Komachiyo and a big baboon!"

Nodding in understanding, the captain grinned. "That is a handy trick. We have a pet duck in our crew. His name is Caroo. He runs really fast and wears armour."

Fascinated by the idea of a giant riding duck, the little girl leaned closer. "What else do you do? Do you go on many adventures?"

"Yeah, lots of them," Luffy answered, steering the cloud toward the western mountains. "A while ago, we went to the moon."

Otama blinked, staring at him. She giggled, assuming it was a joke. "You cannot go to the moon, Luffy-aniki. It is up in the sky."

"We did," Bonney chimed in, leaning forward. "Maybe a year ago. We took the ship straight up, fought some space pirates, and planted our flag in the dirt."

Seeing the lingering doubt on the girl's face, Bonney tapped the Kimiyo bead tied around her wrist. Accessing the stored memory files, a small holographic projection materialized in the air above the cloud.

The glowing image displayed the Thousand Sunny resting in a crater on a gray, rocky surface. The Straw Hat crew stood together in space suits, planting a pirate flag bearing a skull and crossbones into the lunar dust.

Staring at the hologram, Otama's jaw dropped. The concrete proof shattered her disbelief.

"That is incredible!" she gasped, reaching out to touch the projection before it flickered away. "Where else did you go?"

Counting on his fingers, Luffy listed their destinations. "We went to Fishman Island at the bottom of the sea. We went to a sky island made of clouds. Oh, and there was that one weird island we found."

"The mysterious island," Bonney clarified, a smirk forming on her face.

"Yeah!" Luffy nodded enthusiastically. "All the small animals were huge. We saw butterflies the size of houses and giant lizards. But the big animals were tiny. There were elephants the size of mice running in the grass. And the best part was the volcano. It didn't spit lava. It spit out liquid gold!"

Otama's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "A gold volcano?!"

"It didn't last long," Bonney laughed, shaking her head at the memory. "The whole island was unstable. We landed, explored for about three hours, and then the entire place sank straight to the bottom of the ocean."

Pouting slightly, Luffy crossed his arms. "I wanted to catch one of the tiny elephants."

"You should have seen our navigator," Bonney continued, sharing the joke with the little girl. "When Nami realized the gold volcano was sinking into the sea before we could mine it, she dropped to her knees and cried. She was so devastated by the lost treasure that she barely spoke to anyone for a week. We had to tiptoe around the ship just to avoid her bad mood."

Listening to the stories with rapt attention, Otama absorbed every detail. The outside world sounded vast, bizarre, and infinitely more exciting than the grim reality of Wano.

Steering the cloud steadily forward, the captain suddenly stopped talking.

Squinting against the wind, Luffy peered down at the desolate, cracked earth passing beneath them. A faint speck of green moved slowly across the barren landscape.

Pulling the cloud into a sharp dive, he altered their course.

"What happened?" Bonney asked, gripping the edges of the nimbus to steady herself.

"Zoro is down there," Luffy answered, keeping his eyes locked on the moving target.

Descending rapidly, the details of the wasteland came into focus. Walking alone along a dusty, ruined path, a man wearing a white yukata with a green sash carried three swords at his hip.

Dropping the cloud to a height of twenty feet, Luffy jumped off the yellow fluff entirely.

Plummeting toward the dirt, the captain shouted at the top of his lungs. "Zoro!"

Stopping in his tracks, the swordsman looked up at the sky. A familiar, wide grin broke across his face.

"Luffy!" Zoro shouted back.

Luffy leaped straight onto Zoro, who caught him, staggering briefly before planting his feet to steady them both.

Hovering just a few feet off the ground, Bonney and Otama watched the reunion from the safety of the Nimbus cloud.

"What are you doing walking around out here?" Luffy asked. "Nami said everyone was waiting at the castle."

Scratching the back of his neck, Zoro let out a heavy sigh. "I ran into some trouble in the Flower Capital. A corrupt city magistrate tried to frame me as a serial killer. He ordered me to commit seppuku. They gave me a tiny, dull knife."

"Did you cut your stomach?" Luffy asked, tilting his head.

"No," the swordsman grunted. "I used the tiny knife to slash the magistrate and his guards. It turns out he was the real killer. But fighting the local authorities made me a wanted criminal. I had to go into hiding."

Gesturing to the empty wasteland around them, Zoro explained his survival strategy. "I have been living out here in the dirt for a few days. Evading capture. Eating the enormous tigers and boars that wander around the ruins."

"Sounds fun," the captain laughed.

Patting a large, clay jug slung over his shoulder by a thick rope, Zoro smirked. "It got better today. I saw a group of Kaido's soldiers harassing a woman down the road. After I took care of the men, I noticed they were carrying premium sake. I helped myself to the spoils."

"Good job," Luffy approved, turning his gaze toward the towering mountain in the distance. "Let's head to Oden's Castle. The rest of the crew is waiting there."

Turning to walk down the path, Luffy motioned for his first mate to follow.

"I'll ride the cloud," Zoro decided, stepping toward the hovering yellow nimbus.

Lifting his booted foot, the swordsman stepped onto the fluffy surface.

His foot did not stop. It passed straight through the yellow material as if stepping into empty air. Losing his balance, Zoro tumbled forward, crashing face-first into the dirt beneath the cloud.

Leaning over the edge of the nimbus, Bonney laughed out loud. "You can't ride it, moss-head. The cloud rejects anyone who doesn't possess a pure heart."

Pushing himself off the dirt, Zoro scowled at the magical item. Brushing the dust off his white yukata, he adjusted his swords. "Stupid magic cloud. Walking is better anyway."

Chuckling at the display, Luffy opted to stay on the ground.

"I will walk with you," the captain offered, falling into step beside the swordsman.

Taking the lead, Luffy marched down the dusty road, keeping the distant mountain peak in his sights. Zoro walked beside him, drinking sake from the stolen jug. Hovering a few feet above them, Bonney and Otama followed comfortably on the nimbus cloud, bypassing the rocky terrain entirely.

United with their vanguard fighter, the small group moved steadily across the wasteland, beginning their journey to the mountain summit to assemble the full strength of the Straw Hat alliance.