Zoro looked down at the swords, then back at Luffy.
"Captain… I have one condition," he said. "I'll join you. But listen carefully, I have one goal, and that is to become the world's greatest swordsman. If you ever stand in the way of that dream, I'll kill you. Got it?"
Luffy grin only widened. "Good. Because I'm going to be King of the Pirates, and I need the world's greatest swordsman on my crew."
At that moment, a faint notification echoed in Jack's mind.
System Notification: Mission Progress — Recruit Original Straw Hat Member (Zoro) ✅
Template Power Unlocked:Sersi (Eternals)
Jack blinked in surprise. Sersi? The one who can transmute matter?
Suddenly, a rush of energy flooded through him. Combat knowledge, instincts, and power flowed into his body. He could feel his cosmic energy expanding, the particles in the dirt beneath his feet, the iron in the nearby fence, the wood fibers in the post Zoro had been tied to.
"Jack?" Luffy tilted his head. "You okay?"
Jack grinned. "Better than okay."
He picked up a random stone from the ground and focused. A faint golden glow spread across his hand, and the stone shimmered before transforming into pure gold.
Coby jaw dropped. "What… what did you just do?!"
It wasn't just Coby even Zoro and Luffy were stunned by the sight.
"Pretty cool, right? This is the power of transmutation," Jack said, tossing the gold stone to Luffy. "I can change any item into metal, gold, or wood."
Luffy caught it, his eyes sparkling. "You can turn stuff into gold?"
"This is matter transmutation, Captain. I can turn something into many thing that I want for example, that wooden post Zoro was tied to could've been turned into metal," Jack explained.
"What?! That's awesome! Can you change something into meat?" Luffy asked eagerly.
"Yes, I can, Captain," Jack replied with a smile.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?!" Luffy's mouth was already drooling.
Zoro, watching their interaction, couldn't help but smirk. Maybe joining this crew isn't so bad. At least I won't starve anymore.
"Can you change water into alcohol?" Zoro asked.
"Zoro-san… alcohol weakens your body. Your kidneys could be damaged. I remember what you said just now, if we ever stand in your way to become the world's greatest swordsman, you'd kill us. Then your first enemy should be your addiction to alcohol," said Jack seriously.
Jack remembered his old neighbor who'd died in the hospital, stage 5 kidney failure, waiting for a transplant that never came. It had traumatized him so deeply that he studied nutrition afterward and kept a blood pressure monitor in his house. High blood pressure is dangerous, migraines, fainting, or even worse is stroke.
He didn't want to see Zoro end up like that. If Zoro wanted to be the strongest, he had to start by fixing his body.
Zoro was taken aback. For the first time, he faced a real dilemma, his ambition or his addiction.
"Not just that, Zoro," Jack continued. "With your drinking, you could develop fatty liver, heart problems, even hepatitis. With all that, are you sure you can still become the strongest swordsman?"
Zoro clenched his fists, then nodded. "Then I'll stop drinking alcohol from today."
"That's a good decision," Jack said with a nod. He suddenly remembered that even Whitebeard had suffered heart problems because of his drinking.
"Meat…" Luffy mouth was practically dripping with drool again.
Jack laughed. "Yeah, Captain, but I don't think changing things into meat is a good idea unless we're desperate. How about I change something into gold and we buy proper food from a real chef? It'll taste much better."
Hearing that, Luffy immediately started begging Jack to turn something into gold.
Coby, standing nearby, stayed silent but his eyes showed clear temptation.
Before anyone could say more, distant shouts echoed from the Marine base.
"Luffy," Coby said nervously, "what exactly did you do in there?"
Luffy scratched his cheek innocently. "Uh… might've broken a statue of some guy."
"You WHAT?!" Coby nearly fainted.
"They'll be fine," Luffy said cheerfully. "It was an ugly statue anyway."
"INTRUDERS!" a Marine shouted. "They're here!"
Luffy grinned, but Jack wanted Zoro to see how the Marines would react.
"Captain, let's hide ourselves," Jack whispered.
"Huh? Why?" Luffy asked, confused.
"It's for Zoro. He wanted to honor his promise by staying tied up. To respect that, we need to make sure the Marines don't break their promise either. If we show up now, they'll just change their minds."
Zoro looked shocked, while Luffy's eyes widened in understanding.
"Okay… then let's hide," Luffy agreed.
"No need," said Jack with a grin. "Didn't you forget I can turn us invisible?"
"Ah, right!" Luffy said, doing his iconic pose as he remembered.
Coby, Luffy, and Jack vanished from sight, slipping into the execution ground unseen.
Within minutes, Captain Morgan arrived, dragging a bruised and terrified Helmeppo by the collar.
"Father! Father, I'm your son!" Helmeppo screamed.
"Shut up!" Morgan barked, striking him with the flat of his axe-hand. Helmeppo fell to the ground, clutching his face.
The Captain turned to his men. "There's no need to honor my stupid son promise. Just kill Roronoa Zoro!"
The Marines hesitated. Zoro wasn't some evil pirate but Morgan authority terrified them.
Their rifles were raised, aimed at Zoro.
Zoro face darkened. Panic flickered in his eyes. I can't stop bullets with my hands tied… and the captain.... can he?
"Fire!" Morgan roared.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The bullets bounced off harmlessly, and the invisible illusion shattered, revealing Luffy standing in front of Zoro.
"WHAT?!" the Marines shouted in disbelief.
Luffy grin turned dangerous as he adjusted his hat. "You just tried to kill my crew."
"Who are you?" Morgan demanded.
"Me? I'm Monkey D. Luffy, the man who'll become King of the Pirates."
"Shoot him!" Morgan roared again.
"Gomu Gomu no Balloon!" Luffy body inflated like a balloon, and the bullets ricocheted, striking Marines and even Morgan though none fatally.
Meanwhile, behind the chaos, Jack released Zoro bindings.
Zoro stood up, eyes blazing. "Impossible! How did he escape?!" someone shouted in horror.
Finally, payback time. Morgan was beaten down, and later, the Marines reported the incident to HQ.
Afterward, they met Rika again, who smiled brightly upon seeing Zoro free.
Helmeppo eventually changed for the better, and alongside Coby, he joined the Marines.
Thus, the Shells Town Arc came to an end.