"Ay-ay-ay, little Luffy, you absolutely mustn't act recklessly!" The Foosha Village Chief desperately clung to Luffy, yet he couldn't hold back the impetuous boy.
"Don't worry! If bad guys come, I'll beat them up!" Luffy flexed his arm, trying to show off his muscles, but his thin little arm was entirely unconvincing and only made the Village Chief even more worried.
"I'm begging you, just don't cause us any more trouble!"
The straw-hatted kid, however, paid him no mind. He flung open the tavern door and burst in with a whirlwind of energy.
"Ah, Luffy!"
"What are you doing here? Go back quickly!" Makino, the tavern proprietress, had maintained her composure in front of Bellamy. But seeing Luffy barge in, she couldn't help but become flustered. She knew this boy, whom she had watched grow up, all too well. Stubborn as a mule, reckless, and never thought before speaking. If he encountered someone with a bad temper, he'd stir up trouble even if there was none to begin with.
It wouldn't normally be an issue, but the man before them now didn't look like any ordinary pirate. Bellamy carried an undeniable, unshakeable scent of blood. Makino had run the tavern for many years and had seen all sorts of characters; how could she not discern this?
"It's alright, proprietress. Go get a bottle of good booze." Seeing that familiar yet unfamiliar figure, Bellamy couldn't help but smile. "Kid, come over and have a drink with me."
"Alright!" Luffy agreed readily and plopped down opposite Bellamy without a care in the world. The Village Chief and several villagers hovered worriedly outside the tavern, terrified Luffy would cause some trouble.
Makino quickly brought out a bottle of good liquor and placed it before them. "Sir, your drink."
"Luffy, don't speak carelessly." Before leaving, she couldn't resist shooting Luffy a fierce glare. Luffy just grinned broadly but offered no response. This kind of single-minded fellow wouldn't easily change his mind once a decision was made; he wasn't someone who could be easily persuaded with words.
Bellamy smiled, poured himself a glass, and then poured one for Luffy. "Proprietress, no need to be so tense."
"Although I'm a pirate, I wouldn't stoop to attacking ordinary people."
"There's nothing on this island worth my attention." As he spoke, Bellamy glanced up at Luffy. If it weren't for this kid, why would he have bothered coming to such a small place?
"Can I take a look?" Bellamy pointed at the straw hat on Luffy's head.
"You mean this?" Luffy took off his straw hat, cradling it carefully in his hands. This straw hat was his most precious treasure.
"Yes." Bellamy naturally knew how much this straw hat meant to Luffy, but he still made the request. "Can you let me see it?" If it was Luffy, he probably wouldn't refuse.
As he expected, Luffy hesitated for a moment but still handed the straw hat to him.
"Thank you." Bellamy expressed his gratitude sincerely. Because if it were him, he would never easily hand over his most cherished possession to a stranger.
Bellamy took the straw hat and began to seriously examine this legendary treasure: the legendary straw hat passed down from Roger to Shanks, and then from Shanks to Luffy, a symbol of the Pirate King's dream, inherited through three generations.
"It really just seems like an ordinary straw hat." After a thorough examination, Bellamy couldn't discern anything special. Even when scanning it inch by inch with Observation Haki, it remained just an ordinary straw hat.
But Bellamy knew the truth was far from it. Deep within Mary Geoise, in a secret little room, lay a giant straw hat, almost identical to Luffy's, differing only in size. Behind these two straw hats, a world-shaking secret was undoubtedly hidden. This secret might very well be the truth behind the world, the historical truth that the World Government was so desperately trying to destroy.
This straw hat was not something just anyone could wear. Bellamy reached out with both hands, took the hat, and placed it firmly back on Luffy's head. "The dream it carries is too heavy. Don't lose it." The dream of the Pirate King was not what Bellamy sought; this straw hat held no meaning for him.
Having met Luffy and seen this legendary straw hat with his own eyes, Bellamy's purpose in coming to Foosha Village had been completely fulfilled.
"You seem to know this straw hat?" Luffy detected a hint of strangeness in Bellamy's words. "But I don't think I've ever seen you before."
"Forgot to introduce myself." Bellamy smiled at Luffy. "My name is Bellamy, and I'm a pirate."
"I do indeed know you, Straw Hat brat." But as for how he knew him, he couldn't tell.
Bellamy had no intention of explaining further. After sharing a few drinks with Luffy, he finally felt satisfied. "Well then, see you on the seas in the future." Just as Bellamy stood up, preparing to leave, Luffy suddenly grabbed him. "Aaaah! Are you setting sail?!"
"Can I see your pirate ship?" At the mention of a pirate ship, Luffy's eyes sparkled like little stars. Clearly, his real reason for clamoring to see pirates was to get a look at a real pirate ship.
Bellamy's current vessel was a dilapidated cargo ship, truly not something to show off. He wasn't very keen on bringing this noisy little brat onto his ship either. "A pirate ship is just an ordinary sailboat, nothing much to see."
Luffy, however, wouldn't take no for an answer. "Mhm! Can we go now?"
"Hey, kid, are you even listening to me?"
"Is it docked near the beach? Then I'll go on ahead!"
"Damn it! Don't just decide things on your own!" Bellamy hadn't even finished speaking when Luffy had already run off and disappeared.
"That annoying rubber brat…" He really was asking for a beating. No wonder those villagers were so worried; if it were any other pirate, a fight would have broken out.
Bellamy suddenly let out a laugh. Wasn't this just Luffy's personality? "If that's the case, then I'll just head back a bit later." Ross was guarding the ship. If that rascal Luffy rushed over recklessly, the two of them would definitely end up fighting.
Thinking of this, Bellamy's expression turned a little strange. Although Ross hadn't completely mastered the Six Powers, he had at least trained his Iron Body to a proficient level. With a mere thought, his entire body could transform into an iron-hard defense. The current Luffy wouldn't be able to break Ross's defense even if he broke his own hands.
"Beating up the future Fifth Emperor of the Sea." That kid Ross would have quite the story to boast about when he retired in the future.