Before long, their modest pirate ship slowly docked at the harbor. In an instant, the island's villagers spotted the approaching pirates and shouted:
"Pirates are here! Pirates are here! Hey there, young gentlemen and lady, come on into our village tavern for a drink!"
Whoa!
Tsuneo was completely stunned. What kind of village was this? The villagers were this friendly—even to pirates!
"Hey, can someone tell us where we are?"
Normally, Tsuneo wouldn't care much about the specifics, but seeing such enthusiastic villagers immediately piqued his curiosity.
"Big brother pirate, this is the friendliest place in the East Blue, the Windmill Village of the Goa Kingdom! Here, even pirates are welcome as honored guests!"
"What? Windmill Village of the Goa Kingdom, East Blue?"
What a coincidence!
If Tsuneo remembered correctly, this was the birthplace and departure village of the future Pirate King, Monkey D. Luffy.
That said…
What year in the One Piece timeline was this?
Had Red-Haired Shanks arrived yet?
Had Luffy set sail?
Questions swirling in his mind, Tsuneo didn't hesitate. With a flick of his right hand, he decided that, as a pirate, how could he not stop by the local tavern for a drink?
Especially with such pretty girls around!
"Come on, lads, let's head to the tavern!"
"Captain, a quick heads-up: we just arrived in this world. Our entire pirate crew is completely penniless!"
At that moment, Kakuzu appeared beside Tsuneo like a phantom. "But, captain, I think going to the tavern… might not require payment, right?"
"What did you just say? Say that again if you dare!"
Tsuneo's brow furrowed tightly. Kakuzu was basically suggesting they mooch drinks? The tavern owner, Makino, was such a cute girl…
No way they were getting drinks for free!
Ah, whatever. Tsuneo was a little thirsty anyway. They could always repay the village later with a few good deeds—they were all powerful enough to handle it.
With that, Tsuneo nodded and confidently led the crew of legendary villains into Windmill Village's tavern.
As soon as he stepped inside, a little boy of about five or six came into view.
"Hehe, Luffy, you're too young to drink!"
"Hmph! Makino, you stingy brat!"
Seeing the boy, Tsuneo's confusion instantly vanished.
This kid was none other than the future Pirate King, Luffy!
At this point, Tsuneo probably already knew what year in the One Piece world it was.
Without another word, he stepped forward—and what shocked even his crew of notorious villains—Tsuneo grabbed Luffy's face and twisted it!
Luffy turned to glare, completely bewildered, while Makino panicked and quickly covered her mouth with her hands. After all, these were pirates!
However… Luffy's face was soft and smooth!
Not rubbery at all.
Tsuneo wasn't convinced. He tugged again with extra force.
"Ow! Ow! Ow!"
The little Luffy cried out loudly.
Ah, indeed—he wasn't rubber yet.
So Red-Haired Shanks hadn't shown up!
"Hey, who are you? What do you want?"
In an instant, little Luffy leapt and raised his tiny, sandbag-like fists at Tsuneo.
"Ah! Luffy, stop! They're pirates! Haha, Mr. Pirate, I'm sorry! The kid doesn't know better. Can I get you a drink?"
Makino quickly stepped in, smiling to ease the tension, worried that Tsuneo and his crew might get angry.
"What? You're all pirates? That must be fun, right?"
"Haha, absolutely! Pirates? Definitely fun!"
At that moment, Luffy's eyes lit up like stars, brimming with excitement.
"Boss lady, give us your best drinks! And, young man, I apologize earlier. As a token, I'll buy you a drink!"
"Ah, really? I can have one?"
"Hehe, Mr. Pirate, Luffy is still a kid!"
"Hehe, it's fine! Kids don't need much anyway!"
"Haha, stingy one, Mr. Pirate is the best!"
"Hey, call me Tsuneo!"
Without hesitation, Tsuneo picked up little Luffy and brought him to a large table, even pouring him a cup of drink.
"Luffy, look! A flying saucer!"
Just as Luffy looked, Tsuneo sneakily swapped it with a cup of bitter tea.
When Luffy drank it, his face instantly turned green!
"Bleh! Bleh! Stingy, stingy, Tsuneo is also stingy!"
"Hahaha!"
Tsuneo laughed heartily. Teasing Luffy was genuinely fun. No wonder Red-Haired Shanks enjoyed it so much too.
Meanwhile, his crew of supervillains frowned. What was their godlike captain doing? Playing with a kid?
Still childish?
Bored out of his mind?
Were all god-tier powerhouses really this easygoing?
This was a perfect setup for misunderstandings—they looked like weaklings!
Sure enough, trouble arrived.
"Bam!"
Suddenly, a towering bandit king and a dozen of his men kicked down the tavern's door.
Instantly, everyone in the tavern, including Makino, wore expressions of sheer terror.