One Piece: Luffy is My Pokemon

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The hot beam instantly evaporated all the seawater in its path, fiercely rushing into the depths of the sea with destructive force.

At the same time, inside the massive submarine sailboat navigating beneath the waves, Wapol and his lackeys who had escaped from Drum Kingdom were feasting shamelessly in a cabin resembling a palace.

"Meat, meat, meat... It's the same food every day! I'm sick of eating this stuff!!!" After a while, the satiated Wapol leaned back in his enormous royal chair, picking his teeth with a metal toothpick while wearing a disdainful and irritable expression.

"Haven't we returned to Drum Kingdom yet? Didn't you say yesterday we'd arrive today? I can't wait to live in my castle again!"

"Please be patient, Your Majesty!" At that moment, Wapol's chief lackey Chess immediately bowed and replied. "According to our navigators, we'll reach our territory in three hours at the latest. By then, we can restore Drum Kingdom, train our military forces, and eliminate all those who opposed us!"

Chess clenched his fists with a solemn vow, displaying his loyalty and determination to Wapol, whose approval was immediately apparent. What Wapol failed to notice, however, was the flash of fear deep in Chess's eyes. In his mind, the terrifying image of the group calling themselves the "Blackbeard Pirates" involuntarily appeared.

Fortunately, according to the latest information they'd received, that pirate crew had already left Drum Kingdom. This meant they could shed their pirate identities at any time and return to Drum Kingdom to resume their positions as royal ministers!

Although they had taken almost all of the kingdom's resources and treasures when they fled, they could still enjoy themselves and waste time without restraint even at sea. But how could pirates wandering abroad be as comfortable as kings and nobles who preyed on their people?! At that moment, Wapol and his followers were eager to return home!

However, just as Wapol and the others were planning their return to the throne and discussing what policies to implement to further exploit the people, a soldier in a fur coat rushed over and knelt before Wapol.

"Your Majesty Wapol! We've spotted a light sailing ship not far ahead of us. Based on our observations, it appears to be a pirate vessel."

"A pirate ship?!" Wapol's interest was instantly piqued when he heard this. Half-reclining lazily in his chair, he raised his eyebrows. "I've been bored for so long, and finally something interesting comes along. I don't understand why those fools try so hard to become the Pirate King! With such strength, yet they still waste their time dreaming. Why are there so few smart people like me in this world?"

Wapol narcissistically stroked his greasy, fat chin, then pointed at his subordinates. "Come! Let's approach that ship!"

BOOM!!!!!! —

Sometimes, no one knows which will come first: an accident or tomorrow.

Before Wapol could finish speaking, a blazing energy blast penetrated the hull of the submarine with tremendous speed and struck him directly. The searing heat suddenly engulfed his entire body, burning his skin and flesh.

Before he could even process what had happened, Wapol, knocked away by the impact, fell directly into the sea. Under the weakening effect of the seawater, he rolled his eyes and his tongue lolled out as he sank deeper, feeling the conflicting sensations of ice and fire.

Enormous bubbles began escaping through the gaping hole in the hull, carrying precious oxygen away from the cabin. Though it wasn't clear exactly what had happened, the violent shaking of the hull and the rapid influx of seawater terrified everyone aboard.

As the leaking ship tilted severely, countless soldiers rushed out of the cabin. Faced with the prospect of death, they had forgotten everything they usually prioritized! What king? What dignitaries? At that moment, staying alive was all that mattered!

In the blink of an eye, the previously orderly submarine descended into chaos.

Just then, a massive ocean current suddenly emerged from the deep sea, mysteriously enveloping the entire warship and pushing it toward the surface.

Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle~ BOOM!!!

Bubbles suddenly appeared on the calm sea surface, like boiling water. A moment later, under the control of Red's Surf, the warship belonging to the Bliking Pirates was instantly lifted high out of the depths by terrifying waves.

The next second, several huge waves suddenly emerged from the sea surface and quickly gathered together to form two enormous hands like those of a god. The hands grabbed both ends of the massive cabin, and then...

"CRACK!"

With a deafening sound, the whole world seemed to fall silent. The two gigantic hands grabbed the broken hull and shook it violently.

"What... what's happening?!" Kuromarimo, who had used the power of his static-charged hair balls to stick to the deck, let out a helpless roar with an extremely distressed tone. But looking around, there was no one who could save him from this sea of suffering.

Suddenly, countless soldiers who couldn't hold on fell from the ship one after another, dropping into the sea like dumplings. This shocking scene visibly frightened Robin, who stood beside Red. Her deep eyes flashed with shock, her moist lips slightly parted, but she couldn't utter a word.

In contrast, Red, watching the Tin Pirates being thrown overboard, slowly developed a confused expression.

"Huh? Where is he?"

Though he manipulated the waves and played with the ship like a toy, he couldn't find any sign of Wapol.

At that moment, little Merry suddenly appeared before Red. As a ship spirit composed of pure energy, her control over energy far surpassed that of Luffy and the others. So even after firing the Hyperbeam, she wasn't so weakened that she couldn't stand, unlike Luffy and the others after using their powerful techniques.

Of course, there was no comparison between Merry, who had just pierced a ship, and Luffy, who could easily destroy an entire fleet.

At that moment, Merry's face, hidden by her cloak, showed apologetic embarrassment. She sheepishly scratched her temples, then said to Red:

"I'm sorry, Red. When I fired the beam, I think I accidentally knocked Wapol... into the depths of the sea!"

Red: "..."

"Is that really just a coincidence?"

"Uh..." Little Merry smiled coyly. "Sorry, Red."

BOOM!!!

Red immediately canceled his Surf to conserve energy. The enormous wave, no longer sustained by Red's power, instantly collapsed. Along with it fell the Tin Pirates' ship that had been raised high above the water.

Looking at the chaos on the sea, Red shook his head helplessly:

"Forget it. It seems we'll have to ask Laboon for help!"

The deep sea was a mysterious realm that even Red didn't dare to easily venture into. Perhaps when they became planet-level powerhouses one day, they would be able to set foot in every corner of the world.

Red slowly took out a small Den Den Mushi from his pocket. After dialing, Usopp's tired voice soon came through.

"Hey~ Red, what's up?"

It seemed he had been up all night again.

After Red's explanation, Usopp quickly understood his request and relayed it to Laboon. With Usopp's intelligence, he had already developed a way to communicate with Laboon over the past few days.

The principle was actually quite simple—phonograph technology combined with speaker amplification and some clever engineering. After recording what he wanted to convey to Laboon, Usopp could use his device to amplify and modulate the sound to create specific vibrations that Laboon could understand.

That was all it took...

A few minutes later, a massive Island Whale suddenly surfaced from the deep sea. Then it opened its abyss-like mouth and created a powerful suction!

At that moment, the members of the Bliking Pirates, including their ship, who had not yet recovered from the shock, were all swallowed by Laboon along with the wildly surging sea currents. No matter how hard they struggled, it was all in vain.

After just a few minutes, the entire sea surface became calm again, and the Bliking Pirates had completely vanished.

Following Usopp's second relay of instructions, Laboon turned around and dove back into the sea, searching for Wapol in the depths. Before leaving, the whale didn't forget to let out a cheerful, ear-splitting cry to Red, expressing its delight at being needed by its partner.

Unfortunately, Red, who didn't yet understand Laboon's language, still couldn't grasp the detailed meaning of this vocalization.

"What happened?!"

The noise from the commotion soon attracted everyone's attention on the Going Merry, waking them from their sleep. Except for Luffy and Zoro, who were still sleeping soundly, the others emerged from the cabin one after another.

Looking at the rough waves left by Laboon's departure, everyone asked in confusion. 

After hearing everyone's inquiries, Red turned around and smiled slightly: "Nothing happened."

Everyone: "???"

Are you treating us like fools, or blind men?!

The group suddenly regarded Red with skeptical expressions.

But Red remained relaxed and said with a smile:

"But everyone came out at just the right time."

Snap~!

With a crisp finger snap, little Merry suddenly appeared beside him, standing obediently with her hands folded behind her back.

Red said: "Let me introduce you to a veteran member of our Straw Hat crew. At the same time, she's actually the sixth person to officially join the Straw Hat Pirates after Usopp... Sorry, Sanji. It seems Zoro can only refer to you as 'Number 7' from now on."

"Wait, Red!" Nami, who had joined the Straw Hats early on, immediately showed confusion and asked: "You said this kid is the sixth member, but... why have I never seen her before?"

As she spoke, Nami took a few steps closer and curiously examined little Merry. With Red vouching for her, Nami naturally wouldn't worry about Merry being dangerous. Additionally, Merry was so well-behaved and cute that no one would be suspicious of her.

However, in the next second, Nami realized her judgment was completely wrong!

Under Nami's scrutiny, little Merry suddenly displayed a sly smile, raised her head, and greeted her familiarly:

"Hello, Nami! Nice to meet you. By the way, it's not a good idea to hide your personal money in the mezzanine of the food storage room. Be careful—one day Luffy might find it~! I advise you to change hiding places quickly. Actually, the harder-to-access supply closet you chose the second time is a better choice."

"What... what are you talking about?!"

Hearing little Merry's words, Nami's expression instantly changed from stunned to surprised, and finally to nervous laughter. At the same time, cold sweat broke out on her forehead.

The corners of Nami's mouth couldn't stop twitching as she forced a flattering smile:

"That's strange, little friend. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Really? Then forget it!" Little Merry suddenly displayed an innocent, unknowing expression and smiled indifferently.

But in Nami's eyes, the cute little Merry had transformed into a little devil with two horns!

Although Nami was responsible for the Straw Hats' finances, the money was legitimately "earned" by everyone in the crew and didn't belong to her alone. She only had the right to distribute it, not the right to use it all herself.

So sometimes, when Nami allocated funds, she would budget according to market prices, and then rely on her superb bargaining skills to save a substantial amount. The money saved naturally became Nami's "legitimate personal funds."

What confused and horrified Nami was... not even Red knew about this matter, so how could this child-like "partner" in front of her know?!

For a moment, Nami's thoughts raced and her mind was in chaos.

But in the next second, little Merry continued to display that cute expression, then her eyes swept over everyone one by one as she offered each person advice.

"Sanji, the magazines you bought in Loguetown are almost worn out from overuse. If that's a problem, let's find a newspaper delivery person and order the latest edition! Nami won't be stingy with this small expense."

"Mr. Smoker, you don't actually have to match Zoro's training intensity. Everyone's physique is different. Sometimes using too much force can backfire!"

"Vivi, if you really want to venture into the Pokémon world with Red again, you could just tell him directly instead of hiding under your blanket and mumbling about it... I think Red wouldn't refuse."

"And Robin..."

At the last moment, Merry suddenly turned around, looked at the stunned Robin, and smiled softly:

"If you feel lonely, you might as well express your feelings to everyone~ Trust me, your arduous journey is over. This is your final destination!"

Little Merry's revelations left everyone on the deck stunned.

Sanji, whose face had turned red when his embarrassing secret was exposed, immediately asked Red:

"Red! Who is this young lady? Besides... I really didn't buy any inappropriate magazines! You all must believe me!!!"

"Hahaha~" Red grinned. "Don't worry, I won't tell Zoro about this!"

"That's not what I meant..." Sanji stretched out his hand pleadingly, but all he received in return was Red's dismissive attitude.

Smoker and Vivi also displayed angry and embarrassed expressions respectively.

Only Robin, who had not yet fully accepted being part of the Straw Hats, was still contemplating what Merry had just said to her.

"Okay, let's stop keeping everyone in suspense!" Red placed his hand on little Merry's head. "Merry, why don't you introduce yourself properly~"

"Okay!" Little Merry smiled sweetly, then looked at everyone again, and bowed respectfully:

"Hello everyone, I am the ship spirit of the Going Merry, Merry~! With Red's help, I can finally meet and communicate with everyone normally. This feeling is truly wonderful! Thank you all for taking care of Merry during this time! From now on, leave the fight against this sea to me!!!"

Little Merry patted her chest and assured everyone with confidence.