The Straw Hat's Failed Debut

"Boss, are there any new business opportunities in Foosha Village?!"

Looking at the peaceful village on the distant coast, Nami asked with a puzzled expression.

Although the village in front of her was peaceful and tranquil, it didn't look like it had any money at all. In Nami's opinion, there was nothing to be gained from it.

After all, Umbrella Corporation is a commercial company, not pirates. Pirates can plunder Foosha Village and wipe it out, but a commercial company doing business in a village that is more self-sufficient and doesn't have much spare money would surely lose everything.

"In the Goa Kingdom, only the royal city has some purchasing power. I remember that our company already has a branch there, so the market should be saturated, right?"

Standing to the side, Vegapunk smiled and said calmly:

"Nami, you should change your perspective and goals. We're not here to make money."

"You probably don't know this, but Foosha Village is the hometown of the naval Garp the Hero. Today is the day that Garp the Hero's grandson sets sail!"

Nami's body stiffened slightly, and a tearful expression appeared on her face:

"Okay, boss, can't you give me a break? Why do you have to remind me that I've now joined a terrorist organization that wants to overthrow the World Government?"

"What should we do next? Should we kidnap this naval hero's grandson and use him to threaten the hero?"

"I don't think you need a buffer, and I don't need to kidnap Garp's grandson to threaten him... I doubt that trick would work on his family!"

Vegapunk smiled and began to explain to Nami:

"Although Garp himself is a naval hero, his son is one of the most vicious criminals at sea, the leader of the Revolutionary Army, Dragon!"

"And his grandson Luffy has always aimed to become the Pirate King. Today is the day he sets sail and becomes a pirate!"

Nami blinked, looking completely bewildered. Was this some new kind of joke of the year? The son of a naval hero joined the Revolutionary Army, and the grandson became a pirate. This family was certainly quite a spectacle!

"Then... why are we looking for this pirate? Are we trying to contact Dragon through him?"

"No, it's not about contacting anyone through him, just checking his current condition... and maybe drawing some blood and doing some experiments on him!"

Vegapunk waved his hand, Nami completely bewildered. Although Nami now knew Vegapunk's name from the information on the bracelet, she had no real impression of this scientist Vegapunk had been away from the sea for a long time, having always stayed in a small place like the Nami East Blue.

Therefore, Nami always saw Vegapunk as an ambitious and wealthy boss, never imagining that her boss was actually a scientist. Naturally, she was curious about Vegapunk's sudden mention of blood-drawing experiments.

"Alright, that kid should be setting sail soon. Activate the ship's stealth system!"

"Understood, Boss!"

Nico Robin, who was sitting to the side reading a book, responded but did not stand up at all. Under the control of the Flower-Flower Fruit, an arm stretched out from the captain's cabin and pressed a button. Soon, the entire space distorted and the ship disappeared without a trace.

Nami opened her mouth and looked around. Although the ships and everything else were still intact, they all gave off a phantom-like feeling. Moreover, even the shadows of the ships and the subsided sea level had returned to normal.

This ship even has stealth capabilities? Umbrella Corporation truly lives up to its reputation as a super-company with cutting-edge technology!

Seeing Nami touching everything on the ship with a curious expression, Vegapunk couldn't help but shake his head.

"Stop touching it. There's nothing wrong with the boat. It's just that it has an optical protective film on its exterior, so it appears invisible to the outside!"

This stealth ship isn't particularly advanced; it's nowhere near as powerful as the Dream Star, which can directly enter a dream world, or the kind that uses Kamui to distort the void. However, it's more than sufficient for the East Blue.

Unless someone like Garp or Dragon suddenly returns to Foosha Village, ordinary people definitely won't notice anything amiss.

The invisible ship gradually approached the coast of Foosha Village. Just then, amidst a commotion, a boy wearing Straw Hat and a red vest, with a carefree and cheerful smile on his face, pushed a small boat into the harbor.

Then, he waved to the villagers at the port and said excitedly:

"Everyone! I'm setting sail to become the Pirate King! Please don't see me off anymore!"

"Who wants to give you a ride?! Get out of here! Our Foosha Village doesn't need someone like you who wants to be a pirate!"

The Village Head, with a full Whitebeard, looked excited and spat all over the boy's face. The boy laughed and wiped his face, not caring at all.

The Whitebeard Village Head was clearly just talking; the villagers were discussing and making sarcastic remarks, but most of it was just teasing. Some villagers even brought some food and put it on the small boat with only a bucket of water.

Then the Straw Hat devoured it all...

A group of villagers looked on helplessly. "This guy goes out to sea, won't he starve, die of thirst, or drown? He seems to have no common sense at all! Who goes out to sea without food?"

However, people in the pirate world are generally a bit careless, and given that Garp, Luffy, Ace, and others have done a lot of things without any common sense in the past, yet they still live well and become healthier and more energetic, the villagers have become used to it.

Going to sea without food seems like nothing compared to falling off a cliff at the age of five or six, being lifted high into the air by a balloon, and being thrown into a pack of wild animals...

"We've eaten our fill, time to head out to sea!"

After finishing his meal, the Straw Hat patted his belly, waved to the villagers, and pushed the oars, and the small boat quickly drifted towards the shallow sea.

Just a few hundred meters from the shore, a splashing sound came from underwater, and a huge black shadow suddenly shot out, with sharp teeth and a body that resembled a fusion of an eel and a long snake, nearly a hundred meters long—this was the legendary Lord of the Coast!

The powerful Lord of the Coast, who even once took an arm from Four Emperors Red-Haired Shanks!

... Well, it's likely that when Oda first started drawing the manga, he didn't intend to make Shanks one of the Four Emperors, so later on, there was the story of Shanks putting his arm on Straw Hat, which was a barely acceptable patch.

Although no one can understand the point of putting such an arm on Luffy's back...

Regardless, this small Sea Kings, which is already close to 100 meters long, can indeed be called a maritime overlord in the East Blue Sea. There are very few "stronger" creatures that can rival it.

However, it is clear that this is the opportunity Luffy has been waiting for. After nearly ten years of training, he can finally use this Lord of the Coast to bring it to a close!

"Rubber rubber—gun!"

The swung rubber fist transformed into a spear, smashing directly into the face of the Lord of the Coast. After giving the Sea Kings a grotesque expression, the enormous beast that had been terrorizing Foosha Village rolled its eyes and spat out its teeth as it plunged into the sea.

"Hahaha, a mere Poseidon cannot stop my determination to yearn for the sea!"

Luffy had a smug look on his face, but he didn't chase after the Sea Kings that had fallen into the sea. With the sea as a barrier, Luffy might be able to defeat the Lord of the Coast, but it would be difficult for him to truly kill it.

Seeing Luffy radiantly beautiful, Vegapunk smiled and took out a small red and white ball from his pocket.

"Heh, how can a mere Lord of the Coast be considered the nemesis of the Sun God? Let me add some spice to your story!"

A red light entered the sea, and a strange pressure spread out. On the long, slender, and enormous body that was faintly visible, only scales and claws were faintly discernible.

"What... what is that?!"

Nami's face showed a hint of fear. She retreated from the side of the ship until she reached Vegapunk's side, where she spoke in a trembling voice.

Although in the original work, Nami, along with Emergency Food and Long Nose, formed Cowardly Trio in the Straw Hat Pirates, their strength didn't seem to be that great.

But actually, this girl is quite capable in combat, and her courage is definitely no less than that of an ordinary person. Even when she first appeared, she was much stronger than the average small-time pirate.

It's just that the Straw Hat Pirates are full of elites and many freaks, which is why she appears timid and weak.

In reality, the weak members of the Straw Hat Pirates are only weak compared to the main force's freaks. Whether it's Usopp, Nami, or Chopper, their talent and potential far exceed those of ordinary people.

Although Nami did not develop combat techniques based on the Climate Baton after joining the Umbrella Corporation early on, her physical strength and Haki cultivation were much stronger than they were two years later in the original story, making her Unit 1 strongest fighters in the entire East Blue.

However, even with Nami's current strength, she was still terrified by the aura of the "Pokémon" that Vegapunk had just released, which shows that this was definitely not an ordinary creature.

"That... it's a replica I created when I was trying to enhance MetalSeadramon. It was a pure Dragon Sea King created by extracting the Azure Dragon Blood from Kaido!"

"It's really strange. The dragon-like creatures created from the Lineage Factor extracted from Kaido's body don't seem to have any fear of seawater. It seems there are still many secrets about Devil Fruit I don't know about!"

Nami was completely confused. Devil Fruit? Lineage Factor? Dragon-like creatures? What are all these things?

As for Kaido, Nami knew a little about his identity; wasn't he one of the four most wanted pirates in the New World?

However, Nami was very clear about one thing: the thing that Vegapunk released was definitely much stronger than the Lord of the Coast!

"Roar!!"

A terrifying roar echoed across the sea, towering waves surged, and dark clouds appeared in the sky. A giant dragon head slowly emerged from the water, and Luffy, who had been looking smug, froze.

Its body, ten times larger than the Lord of the Coast, merely surfaced and already stirred up a raging ten-meter-high wave. The villagers of Foosha Village cried out in alarm and scattered like birds and beasts to avoid being swept into the sea by the giant wave.

Luffy's little boat bounced up and down in the waves. Even this carefree Rubber Boy instinctively clung tightly to the mast with his arms to avoid being thrown into the sea and drowning in frustration.

"Hey, big guy, are you the father of the Lord of the Coast?! You two look so alike!"

Even so, Luffy still opened his mouth wide and shouted loudly. His originally stiff expression had now turned into one of curiosity, and his eyes even revealed a hint of excitement.

It must be admitted that some people are just born without knowing what fear is, Luffy, as the protagonist, obviously has all the characteristics of a newborn calf.

"These don't look like father and son at all! One is clearly a dragon, and the other looks like an eel!"

On the invisible ship, Nami started to complain.

With a head like a camel, antlers like a deer, eyes like a rabbit, ears like a cow, a neck like a snake, a belly like a clam, scales like a carp, claws like an eagle, and paws like a tiger, what appeared on the sea was indeed Giant Dragon created by Vegapunk using the separated Azure Dragon Lineage Factor!

Although this emasculated version of the Giant Dragon lacks the ability to fly through flames and summon lightning and gales, it still retains the Giant Dragon's tough scales, formidable physique, and ability to breathe Dragon Flame. For the current Straw Hat, it is undoubtedly an opponent far beyond their capabilities.

The Giant Dragon's enormous eyes stared at the Straw Hat before it. Although it was just a castrated clone, its intelligence was still much stronger than that of the ordinary versions of sea monsters—it might even be a little smarter than the Straw Hat!

It naturally understood what the Straw Hat said, and grinned slightly, revealing its white dragon teeth, with wisps of smoke rising from its mouth.

Then the Giant Dragon seemed to grunt, and scorching flames suddenly shot out from its nostrils, turning into a cylindrical Kakkō that blasted the small boat to ashes with a deafening roar. The unlucky Straw Hat only had time to let out a cry before he was roasted to a medium-rare state and fell into the sea.

"Okay! Looks like the protagonist doesn't have any special aura after all..."

Vegapunk shook his head, took out the Poké Ball again, and recalled the Giant Dragon. Then he stretched out his hand, and seawater gushed out, quickly spitting out the still-smoking Straw Hat, who landed on the deck.

"Hmm, let's draw some blood first... and then heal and strengthen this Straw Hat. I wonder if I can force the Straw Hat's Nika Fruit to Awakening!"

Muttering to himself, Vegapunk thought this was a very interesting matter. The World Government's fear of the Nika Fruit was definitely not unfounded. It seemed that the power of the Nika Fruit was far more than what had been shown in the manga at this stage.