I didn’t ask to be reincarnated in ONE PIECE!

Pain.

That was the first thing I felt as I slowly regained consciousness. A throbbing, merciless pain in my forehead, like someone had slammed me with a cannonball. Memories came rushing back—the beach, the village, Old Man Jiro, and then… Bananas.

That little menace of a monkey had taken me out with a well-aimed coconut.

Groaning, I sat up, rubbing the massive bump on my head. The afternoon sun was now high in the sky, meaning I had been out for hours. Great. My first day in this world, and I had already been taken down by a glorified jungle rat.

"You finally awake, kid? Thought you might've died on us. Would've been annoying to dig a grave." A familiar voice spoke up.

I turned my head and found Old Man Jiro sitting on a wooden crate nearby, lazily chewing on a fish skewer. "Oh wow, thanks for the concern," I muttered.

Jiro shrugged. "Bah, you'll live. The village doctor checked on you, said you're just 'concussed and stupid.' His words, not mine."

Lovely.

I stood up, wobbling a bit before steadying myself. "Where am I?"

"Behind my house," Jiro said, gesturing to the small, slightly run-down wooden shack nearby. "We dragged you here after Bananas took you down. Don't take it personally—he's got a grudge against newcomers."

"Why does a monkey have a grudge against strangers?" I asked incredulously.

Jiro chuckled. "Some traveling merchant tried to sell him once. Ever since, he's been terrorizing outsiders like you."

Of course. Why wouldn't a monkey have a personal vendetta?

"Well, now that you're awake, what's your plan?" Jiro asked, standing up and stretching.

I scratched my head. "Uh… honestly? No clue. I kinda just woke up here with nothing."

Jiro sighed. "Figured as much. Alright, kid, listen up. You need a place to stay and some money, yeah?"

I nodded quickly. "That'd be nice."

"Good. You can stay with me for now, but you gotta earn your keep. No freeloaders in my house."

"Fair enough. So what do I do?" I asked cautiously.

Jiro smirked. "Simple. You're gonna work for me."

I had a bad feeling about this.

_______________________

Before I could ask what my 'job' entailed, Jiro grabbed my wrist and started dragging me toward the village.

"C'mon, might as well give you a tour before putting you to work."

As we walked, I took in more of Nowhere Island. It was a small place, definitely not a major hub like Loguetown, but it had its charm. There were wooden houses, a small market, and a harbor with a few fishing boats docked. Villagers bustled around, chatting and trading goods.

"Alright, listen up, kid. Nowhere Island is split into a few important areas," Jiro said, pointing around. "Over there is the market, where folks sell fish, fruit, and whatever junk they think is valuable. If you ever need food, you either buy it there or catch it yourself."

I glanced at the market. The stalls were filled with fish, strange fruits, and even some odd trinkets. One stall sold what looked like a jar of 'mystical sea salt.' Another had a 'legendary rock' that looked like... a regular rock.

"Is the market always this… creative?" I asked.

Jiro snorted. "Nah, today's a slow day. You should see it when some idiot claims they found a Devil Fruit."

I was about to ask more when a high-pitched voice screamed, "STOP THAT MONKEY!"

Bananas was at it again, sprinting through the village with a loaf of bread in one hand and a villager's wallet in the other.

"You little bastard! That's my lunch!" Takeo, the guy from before, was chasing after him with a wooden spoon.

Bananas flipped mid-air, dodging a thrown shoe before disappearing onto a rooftop.

"You see what we deal with?" Jiro sighed.

I sighed as well. This monkey was going to be the death of me.

"Anyway," Jiro continued, "that building over there is the tavern, where folks drink, fight, and tell tall tales about how they 'almost' became pirates. You'll be spending some time there."

"Wait, what?"

Jiro ignored me. "And finally, we've got the fishing docks. That's where most of our income comes from. And guess what, kid?"

"...No."

"Yup. You're gonna be a fisherman now."

Jiro led me to the docks, where a couple of burly fishermen were mending their nets. The salty sea breeze hit me, and I could hear the sound of seagulls overhead.

"Alright, kid, here's the deal. You work the docks in the morning, helping with the boats, sorting the fish, and cleaning up. In the afternoon, you help around the village."

"What kind of 'help'?"

Jiro grinned. "Oh, you know… errands, odd jobs, maybe monkey hunting."

I groaned. "Of course."

One of the fishermen, a gruff-looking man with a scar over his eye, approached. "This the new kid?"

"Yep. Name's Lucius. He's fresh meat."

"Hah! Hope you don't mind smelling like fish, boy."

Oh, this was going to be just fantastic.

Jiro clapped me on the back. "Now, don't screw up. If you do a good job, maybe we won't throw you back into the ocean."

I sighed, already regretting everything. "Yeah, yeah. Let's just get this over with."

For the next few hours, I got put through the wringer. First, I had to help unload fish from the boats. Simple, right? Wrong. The fish were huge, slippery, and smelled horrible.

Next, I had to help clean them. Which meant gutting them. Which meant getting covered in fish guts. Yay.

By the time the afternoon rolled around, I was exhausted, smelly, and questioning all my life choices.

"Not bad for your first day, kid," Jiro said as I wiped my hands on my already-ruined shirt.

"You didn't pass out this time, so that's progress."

"Hilarious," I muttered. "So… what do I get paid?"

Jiro handed me something.

A single berry.

"…Are you serious?"

Jiro burst out laughing. "Nah, just messin' with ya. You'll get proper pay at the end of the week. But consider that berry a welcome gift."

I stared at the coin. My first earned money in One Piece… and it was basically worthless.

"Wonderful," I deadpanned.

Jiro patted my shoulder. "Cheer up, kid. You survived your first day. Not everyone gets that far."

I sighed. "Yeah, but for how long?"

Before Jiro could answer, Bananas appeared out of nowhere, snatched the berry from my hand, and took off running.

"YOU FUCKING MONKEY!"

I screamed at the sky.

This monkey was going to be the end of me.

To Be Continued...