Luffy's Call: My Journey with the Straw Hats

But Zoro didn't even glance at him. He sliced past him with a single, clean stroke and then hurried to the room where Luffy was sleeping. But he was too late. Miss Wednesday was already dragging Luffy out, a long, sharp knife pressed against his throat.

Seeing this, Zoro froze. If Luffy had been held hostage by any other means, he wouldn't have cared, but a blade... that was Luffy's one true weakness.

"Put down your weapon!" Miss Wednesday yelled, her eyes fixed on Zoro. But as soon as the words left her mouth, another, colder voice cut through the air, and she felt the sharp, chilling edge of a longsword against her own neck. The sheer cold of it made the hair on her arms stand on end. Moonlight had appeared behind her.

"If you want to lay a hand on our captain, you're not qualified," he said, his voice cold and domineering.

"You!" Miss Wednesday's body went rigid. It wasn't the blade at her neck that frightened her, but the raw, murderous intent radiating from Moonlight.

"Hmph," Zoro grunted, a hint of regret on his face. He had thought he was the only one who had seen through their ruse. Of course, he couldn't hide it from this man.

"Don't hurt her!" At that moment, Igaram, ignoring the deep sword wound on his body, stood up abruptly and rushed towards Moonlight.

"Don't move, or you'll be killed," Zoro said, his longsword blocking Igaram's path.

"If you want to kill me, then do it! I'll gladly give my life to save hers!" Igaram replied, his voice filled with a fearless resolve as he charged straight at Zoro's blade.

Zoro, surprised, withdrew his sword. He would never cut down a man like that.

"Igaram, don't worry about me! Get out of here!" Miss Wednesday screamed. "They're too strong! We're no match for them! Go!"

"No! Even if I have to bet my life, I won't let these people hurt you!" Igaram said, his face a mask of grim determination as he rushed towards Moonlight, ready to face death.

"A very moving sentiment," Moonlight sneered, his pupils shrinking. "But I'm not interested." He was about to strike, but at that moment, two sneering voices suddenly echoed through the night sky.

"Hehe, so you're here."

"It seems we won't have to do it ourselves."

A man in a brown gown with curly hair and a woman in a beige skirt, holding a small yellow umbrella, descended from the sky, their eyes fixed on Igaram and Miss Wednesday with cold, mocking smiles.

"No, it's Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine!" Igaram's pupils shrank, and a bad feeling suddenly rose in his heart.

"It's you! You're finally here!" Mr. 9 said, standing up and looking at the two newcomers with a smile. "You must have received the letter we wrote. Although we failed the mission, we did manage to lure them to this cactus island, so it can be considered a success." These two were also agents of Baroque Works, but they were senior agents. He and Miss Wednesday had returned here after escaping from the Going Merry and had immediately sent a report to their boss.

"Hehe, of course it was a success," Miss Valentine said with a sweet, cute smile. "But the boss has a new mission for us." She looked at Miss Wednesday, and her next words sent a chill down Mr. 9's spine. "We're here to kill you. Especially you, Miss Wednesday."

"What?!" Mr. 9 was dumbfounded, as if he had misheard.

"You!" Igaram's body shook. Just as he had feared, their cover had been blown. After all, their opponent was that man; it was impossible that he had been deceived by their tricks.

"Why would you kill us? We completed the mission!" Miss Wednesday shouted.

"Nefertari Vivi, Your Royal Highness, Princess of the Kingdom of Alabasta," Mr. 5 said, flicking a booger from his nose. "Did you really think you were that well-hidden? We knew you were an undercover agent from the day you infiltrated Baroque Works. We were just curious to see what you were up to, so we let you be. But now, Alabasta is about to become our world, so there's no need to keep you around anymore."

"You!" Vivi's body trembled, and she suddenly looked like a child who had been caught in a lie, completely helpless.

"What nonsense are you talking about? She's Miss Wednesday!" Igaram shouted.

"Haha, the captain of the guard of the Kingdom of Alabasta," Miss Valentine chuckled, her eyes filled with a murderous glint. "What's the use of lying now? Your country will soon be ours. We're here today to kill you. Because you are no longer needed."

"Go!" Without another word, Igaram grabbed Vivi, and the two of them turned and fled. Now that their identities had been exposed, there was no point in hiding. Their opponents were senior agents.

"Can you escape?" Mr. 5 said with a faint smile. Their flight had confirmed the truth of his words. Mr. 9 was stunned, and even Zoro looked surprised by the sudden turn of events. Mr. 5 licked his finger, picked his nose again, and flicked another booger at the fleeing Igaram and Vivi. Though they were fast, they couldn't outrun the projectile.

BOOM!

A shocking explosion erupted in front of them, and the ground trembled. The surrounding walls collapsed, and Igaram and Vivi were sent flying, their bodies covered in blood. They were both seriously injured, their fighting ability gone.

"Miss Wednesday!"

"You...!" Seeing this, Mr. 9 was suddenly filled with a righteous fury. He and Miss Wednesday had worked together day and night, and they had formed a deep friendship. Though he was confused by the revelation of her true identity, seeing his companion so brutally attacked sent him into a rage. He charged at Mr. 5, his nunchaku-like batons a blur of motion.

"Haha," Mr. 5 said with a faint smile and picked his nose again.

BOOM!

Mr. 9 was sent flying by another explosion.

"I was originally planning to kill you as well," Miss Valentine said, opening her umbrella and floating into the sky. Her face was as sweet as a flower, but her words were laced with a cruel, murderous intent. "But you stupidly came to me. Now, I'll give you the final blow."

"Ten Kilo Press!"

"One Hundred Kilo Press!"

"One Thousand Kilo Press!"

"Ten Thousand Kilo Press!"

BOOM!

Miss Valentine hit the ground with a smile on her face, leaving a massive crater beneath her. A force of ten thousand pounds falling from the sky... what incredible power. Mr. 9 was nowhere to be seen.

"Mr. 9!" Vivi cried, a look of sadness on her face. He had been caught in the blast because of her. But she was so seriously injured that she could barely stand.

"Go!" Igaram stood up abruptly, ignoring his own wounds, and scooped Vivi into his arms, preparing to run. No matter what, he couldn't let anything happen to her.

"It's useless," Mr. 5 sneered, picking his nose again. "I ate the Bomb-Bomb Fruit. Everything on my body can explode. Unless you're faster than my boogers, this next blow will kill you." He flicked another one.

BOOM!

The two of them were sent flying again, and this time, they couldn't get back up.

"Hehe, I ate the Kilo-Kilo Fruit," Miss Valentine said, floating up again with her umbrella. "Now, I'll let you feel the sensation of being crushed."

"Ten Kilos!" Her weight suddenly became extremely light, but in the next moment... "One Hundred Kilos! One Thousand Kilos! Ten Thousand Kilos!" She fell from the sky like a meteor, aiming to crush the two of them. A force of ten thousand pounds... no matter how strong they were, they would surely be killed.

"Damn it... is this the end?" Igaram said, his voice filled with despair. Faced with two high-level agents, they were finished.

BOOM!

Miss Valentine slammed into the ground, the force of her ten-thousand-pound press cracking the earth beneath her.

"Hmph," Mr. 5 grunted, picking his booger, not even bothering to look at the result. They couldn't possibly be alive.

"Who are you?" But at that moment, a slightly shocked voice came from the crater. It was Miss Valentine. Moonlight had caught her with one hand, the ground beneath his feet cracking like a spiderweb from the force of the impact, but he had stopped her completely. He raised his head, his eyes flashing.

"The Straw Hat Pirates. Vice-Captain Moonlight."

"A pirate?" Miss Valentine flew back to Mr. 5's side, a look of surprise in her eyes.

"A pirate? Get lost. We're not looking for you," Mr. 5 said coldly, but a flicker of shock crossed his face. That was a ten-thousand-pound press, and he had caught it with one hand. Just how strong was he?

"You...!" Igaram was stunned. He hadn't expected Moonlight to intervene. Vivi, panting, was equally stunned, a look of confusion on her face.

"My business with her is not finished," Moonlight said calmly. "If you want to kill her, you'll have to wait."

"Hahaha, the vice-captain of the Straw Hat Pirates?" Miss Valentine suddenly laughed. "Don't talk to me in such a commanding tone. Kill her later? I'm not a member of your crew. Why should I listen to you?" They were high-ranking agents of Baroque Works, assassins. Who did this man think he was, trying to bargain with them?

"What does your business have to do with me?" Mr. 5 sneered. "You say to wait, so we should wait?" He picked his nose, flicked his finger, and prepared to attack. They were assassins. Their job was to eliminate targets, and any obstacles in their way would be cleared.

"Is that so?" Moonlight said with a cold smile, his pupils shrinking. A light blue aura, condensed into a ball, shot towards the two of them. "Conqueror's Haki." And at level 3, it was more powerful than ever.

The two of them froze, and their bodies began to tremble, a wave of weakness washing over them. They collapsed to their knees, staring at Moonlight in amazement. "What... what's happening?"

"Damn it, what did you do to us?" They felt their bodies shaking uncontrollably, and they couldn't muster the slightest bit of strength.

Moonlight didn't even look at them. With a flick of his sword, he sliced the incoming booger in two. He then turned to Zoro. "Wake everyone up. In this situation, I'm afraid we can't sleep peacefully anymore."

"Alright," Zoro nodded and went to wake the others. Even Luffy, stretching, slowly woke up.

"Moonlight, what's wrong?"

"What's going on?"

Sanji, Usopp, and Luffy, one after another, looked at the scene before them, completely bewildered.

"Nami isn't here?" Zoro asked, looking around. He couldn't find her anywhere in the room.

"I'm here," Nami's voice called out, and she returned empty-handed, a look of regret on her face. "It's a pity. I thought I could get a lot of gold coins, but this group is really poor."

"You..." Zoro was speechless. Had this woman really gone back to her old thieving ways while they were all asleep?

"Moonlight, what's going on?" Luffy asked, now fully awake and looking around with a serious expression.

Moonlight explained everything that had happened.

"What? This is actually a gathering place for bounty hunters? Their enthusiasm was all an act?" Usopp was taken aback. No wonder they had all been so impressed by his tall tales. He had thought they actually believed him.

"Baroque Works? I can't believe we got caught up with this organization right after arriving in the Grand Line," Sanji said, taking a deep breath, a frown on his face. But then he saw the pitiful, moonlit face of Vivi, and his eyes lit up. "Your Royal Highness, hello! I am a prince! Please, allow me to protect you, my beautiful princess!"

Zoro was speechless. This cook was too shameless.

"Please, save our princess! Please!" Igaram pleaded, panting as he looked at Luffy.

"Who are you? And who are they?" Luffy asked, his face unusually serious, getting straight to the point. Though he was usually a goofball, he knew when to be serious.

"I am..." Igaram said with a bitter smile. He knew he couldn't hide it any longer and explained everything: why they had infiltrated Baroque Works, and how one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Sir Crocodile, was trying to steal their country. The mere mention of the Warlord's name made him tremble.

"What?! The Warlord, Crocodile?" Nami and Usopp gasped. The name was like a thunderclap.

Sanji frowned. He had seen Hawkeye in action, and he knew the strength of the Warlords was beyond the imagination of ordinary mortals. After all, they were pirates recognized by the World Government, with the freedom to roam the seas. Of course, they were powerful.

"So what?!" Luffy roared, his voice filled with a righteous indignation. "Stealing people's countries and trying to kill a princess... what Warlord? What Crocodile? I'm gonna send you flying!"