Suddenly, Tetsuo wakes up and begins vomiting out a huge volume of sea water while coughing and gaping for air. A dull, throbbing ache drums in his head, like if he'd been sucker-punched by a heavyweight boxer. His body is stiff, his limbs half-buried in warm sand, and as he pushes himself up from the ground on shaky arms and the sand clings to his skin, his mind slowly crawls toward wakefulness and he becomes aware of his body condition.
"I- I'm fine? I'm sure I was hit by a truck in a van and crashed to the road, losing blood and in a lot of pain. It hurt as hell. M-maybe it was a dream?" Tetsuo questions while gaping for air and touching his body franctically like he wants to make sure that he's fine.
But what surprises him most when he opens up his eyes and scans his surroundings is not that he has no wounds, but that his body and the place where he's look very different from real life. The proper word to describe them would be to say that they look 'anime-like'.
"Huh? W-What's this? Where the heck I am? Why everything looks like this?"
As these questions pop in his head and his heart rate spikes due to nervousness, he realises that he has a different point of vision compared to earlier while standing, which probably has to do with the height of his body, and as he hears the rhythmic ocean waves crashing in the beach sounds, he runs to the edge of the shore to see his new appearance reflected on the water.
"It can't be true."
Now he is a large build man with a broad and well-toned chest, and he's taller than he had been before, about 230 cm tall. He has thick, black hair growing unkempt, visibly thick eyebrows, and also possess heavy stubble.
His clothes are a tattered set of loose, dark pants and a white sleeveless T-shirt, and from the image he sees, Tetsuo thinks he must be older than he was in his old life, close to 30 if he hasn't already.
Then, in the instant, that the reality of his situation hits him hard, Tetsuo collapses to his knees as he sweats profusely and the salty tang of the ocean fills his nose. Blinking against the sun shining lively, his vision blurs and then clears, revealing an endless expanse of deep blue stretching to the horizon. A beach. He's lying on a beach of an anime world.
A sense of unease settles in his gut at the same time he presses his fingers to his temples in frustration, groaning deeply and struggling to piece together how he got here.
"Okay, okay, calm down and analyze the facts at hand."
"I mean, one minute I was on Earth, badly injured and struggling to hold on to life, and the next, I wake up on a strange beach with a body that doesn't feel like mine and looking like a character from a Shonen-style anime."
"Of all the stories on the internet, I can say that I died in my old world and have now transmigrated to this one. The curious thing is that I have memories of my life on Earth, but not of the host body I'm now occupying."
"Taking into account the circumstances surrounding me, it must be because its the body of a shipwrecked man who was washed ashore on the island after dying at sea for some reason, and my consciousness, soul or whatever you want to call it must have been transferred here after my death. That would explain these ragged clothes and their permeating fishy smell."
"Arrgh! My head, I feel nauseous… and a little bit pain too…" Tetsuo groans while bringing his hand covering his face. "Why the hell am I on this beach of a different world? Could it be...?"
*Growl*
While Tetsuo's confused by his current predicament, a sharp growl rumbles through the air, and for a brief, horrifying moment, Tetsuo thinks some kind of wild animal is about to leap from the bushes and maul him. Then, glancing down at himself, he realizes the sound came from his own stomach.
"Hunger. Right. I had to arrive here starving. And now that I pay attention, my throat is dry too—my body's screaming for food and water."
With a determined huff, he dusts off his pants and T-shirt—slightly ragged and dirty but still functional—, and looking around the place he notices houses and buildings not far from him.
"Well, the situation is strange, and I'm worried that nothing makes sense... but the important thing is that I'm still alive and can move. Survival first, and existential crisis later."
"Even if I'm now in an anime world, I won't get anything by whining and complaining in this beach."
"I can still thrive in this new life, so let's start by going there to look for help. Maybe I can at least figure out where the hell I ended up."
With these words of encouragement, Tetsuo sets out for his first contact with the civilization of this new world. However, It didn't go well.
As soon as he arrives, exhausted after an hour crossing the forest that separated them, Tetsuo tries to talk and ask questions to the natives for help and information, but due to his disheveled appearance and dizzy disposition, no one wants to get involved with him.
He doesn't give up trying to engage in dialogue, but all he achieves is being labeled as dirty and disgusting, even being beaten up by some civilians and patrolling Marines.
*Tap. Tap. Thud!*
Weak, hungry, stumbling and bruised, Tetsuo finally stammers and collapses in front of the bar restaurant "Food Tavern".
When he's about to lose consciousness, Tetsuo heards footsteps approach him, and looking up he sees a young woman with medium-length brown hair tied back and brown eyes, wearing a light green dress over a dark green shirt and brown sandals.
"Huh? W-Who are you?" He stutters with barely any strenght left.
The woman then reaches to him and grabs his face with her hand. "Poor man. You look like you've had a terrible time."
"Come on, I'll take you home with me. You need food and a bath right away"
"Why are you helping a stranger like me? I have no money or anything of value to offer you." Tetsuo states as the woman places his arm around her shoulders to help him up.
"Stop talking nonsense and start walking. It's getting dark, and it's not a good idea to stay out in your state, so get moving now. You can tell me about what happened to you once we get inside."
Luckily, the kind Ririka took him in when no one else wanted to get involved, giving him food, new clothes and a place to stay in exchange for his work in the bar and helping with miscellaneous tasks.
Working at the Food Tavern for the nex three months gave Tetsuo some security and comfort in this new world, and it also gave him plenty of chances of listening to some of the customers' comments and conversations—World Government, Pirate King Roger, Marines...
Although Tetsuo had already formed an idea in his head from everything he had witnessed, these details completely confirmed "where" he had ended up: This is the world of One Piece!
A chaotic and extremely warped world straight out of his favorite anime/manga. An extremely dangerous world filled with either giant beasts, ferocious Sea Kings, ruthless pirates, a despotic and corrupt system of government, and fanciful things beyond what anyone could dream of.
Most people who don't know One Piece in depth would say that it's a comedic and childish anime, and considering that people usually don't die even if you blow them up, break all their bones or leave them flattened like an accordion, and that there are many plot holes due to reimagining the series and adding new powers that barely make sense, you can't blame them for thinking that.
But that's far from the truth. Although the author doesn't like to emphasize it for convenience, in One Piece, people die constantly, whether at the hands of pirates, the Marine, the government, or the dangerous creatures that inhabit this world. And Tetsuo, who is a fervent fan of the series, knows it very well.
What troubled him the most is that he actually transmigrated as a side character without name with absolutely no cheats. Not system, not gacha, not overpowered devil fruit, not special lineage... Just a normal, plain man that has nothing special.
'I really must have been born with bad luck. After all the hard work I put into trying to get out of the shit and achieve a fulfilling lifestyle, it all went gone in a flash, and the next second I find myself in this place as a nobody.' Tetsuo thought about in his room at the bar.
'Administrator? God? Whoever is there? Why did this happen to me? Why did I transmigrate to this kind of world without any cheat to help me? Wait a minute, was it...'
This memory of his last moments on Earth flashed instantly.
'Awww! That's why.' Tetsuo moaned internally. 'Now it all makes sense. It was because of what I thought back then. Of course, I asked for this myself.'
'Well, there's no point in complaining about it now. I'm sad to have said goodbye to my old life when everything was finally going well, but what can I do if I died? At least a void of nothingness wasn't expecting me on the other side of the threshold.'
'I'm still alive, so since I'm here I might as well take advantage of it to enjoy my new life to the fullest and try to get everything I want. After all, I'm not in such a bad starting position right now.'
Luckily for his mental health, this is the island of Shells Town in the East Blue, which known as the weakest of all the seas and a symbol of peace by those on the side of justice.
Even if it is the birthplace of world-renowned powerhouses like Gol D. Roger, Monkey D. Garp, Monkey D. Luffy, and Roronoa Zoro, here the average bounty for pirates is around 10 million, the sea kings are small and few, and there are no giant or especially dangerous creatures on the islands.
It's true that pirates attack innocent islands, and some even conquer them as their bases, but in truth, such attacks are rare compared to other seas and eras. Leaving aside pirates who pose a certain threat level, like Arlong, Krieg, and some others Tetsuo doesn't remember, the East blue is relatively safe compared to the rest of the world.
In addition, this island itself has a Marine Base with several soldiers ready and prepared to intercept hostile troops. If a place like this wasn't peaceful and safe from pirates, then East Blue would be completely ruined.
If he remembered correctly, Shells Town is where Luffy and Zoro would meet and where Koby would enlist in the Marine. Ririka, the woman who had taken her in, was the mother of little Rika, who was the cute girl who would give Zoro those sweet rice balls after he saved her and her mother from Helmeppo and his pet dog.
Aside from his current whereabouts, he also discovered that he had arrived 5 years before Luffy set sail. The Base Commander wasn't Morgan, but an unknown man named Rhodes, Kuro and the Black Cat Pirates were still harassing the East Blue, and there was much more in the world that had yet to be implemented.
With the necessary information gathered, Tetsuo contemplated what to do in this new life that had been given to him.
The thoughts of simply not bothering with anything and let the canon run its course did cross his mind... But those are the thoughts of a quitter and of someone that can't accomplish anything great.
He had been forcibly transported to this world before the story even began, so why should someone like him have to stay idle and give up on carving his own legend.
Although he didn't plan anything in particular yet, he knew that he wouldn't achieve anything as long as he remains a normal, weak human. He craved strength, so joining the Marine seemed to be the best possible option for him at the current moment.
'Paid training, monthly income of over 10,000, large platform, quick promotions, accommodations, three meals a day, and transportation (warships) are provided. With the support of the World Government, the job is stable, and taking into account the dangers and difficulties of this world, it's more convenient to gain experience in this world by starting as a marine rather than as a pirate!'
With this thought informing his future intentions, Tetsuo set out to spend the next three months training so he would be ready to join the Marine. While he couldn't hope for much at the moment, that margin of time would allow him to prepare himself physically and mentally so as not to arrive as a wimpy, weak-willed man.