Chapter 8: Bullying Little Kids

"Luffy, until you fully master your Conqueror's Haki, try not to use it recklessly."

Shanks paid no attention to the dead bandits, his gaze fixed on the unconscious girl in Luffy's arms. "It can harm innocent people."

In the initial awakening phase of Conqueror's Haki, the user typically only has control over an on/off switch. Like a firearm, its power is fixed.

The next step for the user is to refine that power—turn it from a cannon into a pistol, from affecting crowds to targeting individuals, and eventually being able to adjust its strength.

Like what Shanks had done earlier: he released a very mild wave of Conqueror's Haki aimed only at Luffy—just enough to startle him.

That's also why Luffy recovered quickly from its effects.

"I understand," Luffy nodded.

He handed the girl back to Shanks, who looked at her helplessly. "Might as well let her have a good nap."

"Grandpa, I'm back!"

Luffy pushed open the door to his home but saw that Garp wasn't inside. He didn't think much of it—Garp was always coming and going without notice. Sometimes he even left the island without telling Luffy.

This might also be because Luffy was too sensible.

After all, he was a transmigrator with the mind of an adult. He clearly understood that people's fondness for children often hinged on how "well-behaved" they were.

So Luffy rarely caused trouble for others.

This sort of sensibility made things easy for adults.

Of course, Luffy would occasionally take advantage of his identity as a child to act out a little.

Turning on the shower, Luffy prepared to bathe and sleep. This had been his first attempt at killing. Strangely, he felt no discomfort—whether it was due to prior mental preparation or perhaps because the martial morals buried deep in his memory had been awakened by his abilities.

There was even a faint pleasure in eliminating evil and venting his aggression.

To him, killing someone felt as easy as clubbing a fish to death.

"My first superpower acquired. As for the other two types of Haki—Armament and Observation—I'll ask Grandpa for those later. The Amazon Lily where the Pirate Empress lives should have a unique tradition of Haki training anyway. It's a country where everyone can use Haki…"

"With Grandpa backing me, I'll be invincible!"

To the old version of Luffy, things like noble background meant nothing—he'd trade it all for a good barbecue. Even being born into a powerful lineage didn't matter much.

But for a transmigrator, leveraging one's identity and the power it brings is as natural as breathing.

At dawn, Luffy got up on time, asked Miss Makino for breakfast, worked out, sparred with some animal friends, went home for a bath, then asked Miss Makino for lunch.

Uta only woke up groggily around noon.

"Lu…ffy, good morning. I feel like I had a really good sleep…"

Yawning, Uta sat beside Luffy. "Do you always eat this much in the morning?"

"It's already noon, Uta," Luffy reminded her.

"Eh? No way. I always wake up early!"

The drowsiness gradually left Uta's face. She looked at the sun outside. "Weird… when did I fall asleep last night? I don't remember a thing…"

She really was still half-asleep. She'd even come out in her loose pajamas and hadn't noticed.

Luffy finished his milk and started preparing for his afternoon workout.

"Luffy, let's play tic-tac-toe!"

Uta had no interest in Luffy's boring push-ups and sit-ups. She crouched in a shady spot, watching him perform what looked like very tiring exercises, still obsessed with tic-tac-toe.

"Nope. Because Uta always loses. That's boring."

Luffy crossed his arms and lifted his whole body off the ground, thoroughly enjoying the feeling of having power.

His body felt so light—this was a privilege only children enjoyed. Back in his childhood, he could easily perform high-difficulty movements, but later in life, even doing a single push-up became a struggle.

Now that he had the rare chance to become a child again, Luffy fully savored the joy this lightweight body brought him.

To him, this was the happiness of "[Since I've reincarnated, I need to make the most of this opportunity]."

"You're talking nonsense! We've had plenty of draws! Besides, even Shanks lost to me now—I've improved a lot!"

Uta puffed up her cheeks and stared wide-eyed as Luffy jumped around.

"If Uta loses to me again, then you have to promise me one thing!"

Luffy, taking off his wet shirt, said to her.

"What is it?"

"Haven't thought of it yet."

"Then let's play!"

Uta was full of confidence. She felt certain of victory this time—and even if she couldn't win, a draw would still be acceptable. How hard could it be?

Luffy reluctantly agreed to play the game.

Building a good relationship with the future diva was important, especially since he was planning to sneak aboard Shanks' pirate ship.

In the original timeline, Luffy had also sneaked onto Shanks' ship—only to be caught by Uta.

But if he could get along well with this little brat now, maybe he could stick around on the Red-Haired Pirates' ship undetected.

Above the peaceful island echoed the complaints of a girl. On the ground, the two kids had drawn numerous tic-tac-toe boards.

Uta still lost far more than she drew.

This seemingly simple game always slipped out of her grasp at the last moment.

The frustration of being just one step away from victory drove her absolutely mad.

To Luffy, this was just an unfair little game where going first guaranteed a win.

As long as he had the first move, his odds of victory were massively boosted.

Uta's losses and occasional draws were all carefully calculated probabilities.

But the nine-year-old girl had no idea about any of that.

The simplicity of the rules made her overlook the hidden traps.

It was time to switch to a different puzzle game.

"Uta, let's play Gomoku (Five in a Row) instead!"

Luffy suggested.

Tic-tac-toe was a bit too childish—okay to play now and then, but the way Uta obsessively fixated on it was starting to bore him.

So a new, friendship-building game stepped into the spotlight.

To Uta, the only difference was that now you had to line up five instead of three to win.

She was full of confidence once again... and kept losing, again and again.

"Bullying little kids feels amazing,"

Luffy sighed sincerely.

"I'm not playing anymore! You're cheating, Luffy!"

Uta's eyes were red as she ran off crying, yelling "Waaah!" all the way to Shanks for help.

Soon, the time for parting had arrived.

Uta carefully picked out her princess outfit, put on the beautiful accessories Shanks had gifted her, and dressed herself up like a little royal.

The pirates gathered noisily inside Makino's bar.

Luffy, meanwhile, tried to join the Red-Haired Pirates through official channels—openly and honestly.

"Shanks, take me with you! I want to see the outside world too!"

Luffy stood before Shanks, his eyes filled with longing as he looked at the pirate.

(End of Chapter)