Storyline
Ten years earlier, Gray Terminal, Gate: Two men are just coming out of town and are happy that they were able to trick a rich man by selling him scrap metal, as “treasure” from the Grand Line, for a lot of money. Unnoticed, Ace follows the two men.
Luffy has reached Gray Terminal, which he has never seen before. Gray Terminal is a large garbage dump outside the city gates, which is also a lawless zone, so there are many criminals there. Luffy jumps from one pile of garbage to the next, looking for Ace. Meanwhile, the latter has stolen the money from the two men. Meanwhile, a group of men are fighting over what appears to be a valuable pearl necklace. Luffy encounters one of the men, he initially tries to force Luffy to clear the way, but he doesn’t have time as he is already being chased by others. Luffy just keeps walking through the terminal until he spots Ace in the distance walking into a forest.
Forest: Ace goes to a tree and calls for Sabo. Shortly after, a ten-year-old boy shows up, already expecting Ace and sitting on a treetop. Ace joins him. They both compare their loot and Sabo is impressed with how much Ace got together. The two put today’s loot with the rest they’ve been gathering for five years to buy a pirate ship to start their pirate life. Luffy, who is currently standing at the bottom of the tree, overhears this. Luffy exclaims to the two of them, overjoyed, that he wants to be a pirate too. Ace and Sabo are again shocked that someone has found their hiding place, and immediately climb down and knock Luffy to the ground with a punch. A bit later, the two have Luffy tied to a tree and are deliberating what to do with him now. Luffy doesn’t seem to understand the gravity of the situation and talks to the two normally. Luffy also wants to make friends with Sabo, who in turn has no desire to do so. Sabo lectures Ace that this was one of the reasons he wanted Ace to move in with him. Ace then decides that since Luffy is a risk because their treasure could be revealed, that they need to kill Luffy. Sabo agrees. Luffy immediately screams for help and Sabo immediately urges Ace to get it over with. However, Ace has never killed a human before, which is why he wants to leave this to Sabo. The latter, however, has no experience in this either. Luffy asks them not to throw him into the water, whereupon Ace decides to have him thrown into the nearest river.
Gray Terminal: The two men who were robbed by Ace have called Porchemy, a member of the Bluejam pirate gang, for backup and explained the situation to him. The latter has already heard about Ace and Sabo stealing from people here on a daily basis. When they hear Luffy’s shouting from the forest, they decide to look around. Porchemy wants to take care of the thieves personally before his captain finds out about it. Ace and Sabo have freed Luffy for now and are watching Porchemy from afar. Sabo has already heard about Porchemy’s cruelty and even Ace is already regretting stealing the money. They are about to sneak away when they notice that Luffy has disappeared. The latter has already been captured by Porchemy. Luffy calls for help, mentioning Ace’s name. When Porchemy asks if he knows where Mentioned or the money are, Luffy denies it. However, it is obvious to everyone that Luffy is lying. Porchemy can’t believe what a terribly bad liar Luffy is. Porchemy then decides to take Luffy along to “make him remember”.
Gray Terminal, House: Using a giant hammer, Porchemy tries to get Luffy to talk, but since Luffy is a rubber man, this doesn’t really help. Porchemy then demands special gloves. Meanwhile, in the forest, Ace and Sabo are busy taking their treasure somewhere else. They believe it’s only a matter of time before Luffy reveals their hiding place. Therefore, they must quickly move everything to safety. In the meantime Porchemy has put on two steel gloves with spikes. With these he keeps hitting Luffy to make him tell them where the money is. Luffy, however, steadfastly refuses. Porchemy is furious and orders his men to search for Ace and Sabo in Gray Terminal. However, no one living in Gray Terminal wants to betray Ace and Sabo. On the contrary, everyone advises Porchemy’s men that they should not underestimate the two, even if they are still children. Sabo has been secretly listening to the conversation. The penny drops for him and he sets off.
Forest, new hiding place of Ace and Sabo: It is already evening. Ace is glad they were able to relocate the treasures. Sabo arrives at their new hideout and explains that Porchemy and his men still don’t know where to look because Luffy hasn’t told them anything yet. He’s sure Luffy is being tortured, yet he hasn’t revealed anything, but will surely die soon if they don’t do something.
Gray Terminal, Coast: In the pirate ship of the Bluejam gang, Captain Bluejam wonders where Porchemy & Co. are. He’s beginning to suspect that Porchemy has made off with the money. His gang tries to calm him down, saying that Porchemy is surely just killing someone and forgetting the time.
Gray Terminal, House: Porchemy is still beating the crap out of Luffy. Even one of his own men is getting too brutal and tries to convince Porchemy to stop, as Luffy is barely able to speak. It doesn’t help and he feels consequences for his statement. He is then ordered to find Ace and Sabo. Porchemy explains that they are all in mortal danger, as Bluejam still hasn’t received his money. Porchemy continues to lash out at Luffy, who still refuses to say a word. Eventually, Porchemy has had enough. He throws away the gloves to finish it with his sword. At that moment, Ace and Sabo show up.
| TV Episode Guide | Post-War Arc (Anime) |
