One Piece Chapter 22: You Are A Rare and Precious Animal Too

The scene opens with a view of a small boat sailing on the open sea under a cloudy sky. Sound effects "KA" and "KA" float in the air. On the boat, Luffy stands triumphantly, holding his straw hat high in the air with one hand. He shouts happily, "IT'S FIXED...!" with a loud "DO-N!" sound effect emphasizing his excitement. In the background, Zoro is lying on the deck, fast asleep with his arms crossed behind his head.

Nami holds up a needle and thread, looking at Luffy. She says, "I just... mended the cuts. I think that should do it, try not to poke it too much." Luffy, holding his newly repaired straw hat, replies enthusiastically, "Right! Right! Thanks! You did a great job in fixing this hat." He then starts poking the hat repeatedly with his finger, accompanied by "POKE POKE POKE" sound effects. Nami yells angrily, "Didn't you listen to what I just said?!?" Luffy continues poking, saying "YAAAA-AAAA..." until his finger bursts right through the top of the hat with a "BUSSS!" sound. Nami looks on in dismay, muttering, "Uh oh..." Luffy stares at his finger sticking out of the hat and says, "Ah!" In the next panel, Nami forcefully jams the needle into Luffy's head with a "ZUBO!" sound effect. Luffy yells, "Stop poking me with that needle, it hurts!" Nami retorts, "It's useless if I hit you, so I have to use the needle!" Luffy, rubbing his head, replies, "Ah, that makes sense!" Meanwhile, Zoro wakes up from his nap, looking annoyed. He complains, "You guys are too noisy! I can't sleep with all this noise. Hey! I'm hungry!"

Zoro sits up on the boat and demands, "Share us some food!" Nami, looking exasperated, scolds him, "Oh, please! You need to be more prepared! You don't bring food or water and you dare to go to sea, you underestimated the sea!" Luffy suddenly points ahead and shouts, "Ah! I see something!" Zoro remarks to Nami, "It's a miracle you've survived up to now!" Nami confidently replies, "There's always a way!" Luffy excitedly announces, "Hey! There's an island!" Nami looks at the distant island and dismisses it, saying, "That island is no good! It's unpopulated, so it's useless! Let's just keep going!" Zoro interrupts, "Wait!" He grabs the oars and starts rowing the boat towards the island with "ROW ROW" sound effects. Zoro explains, "Let's see if we can find someone who would join us there... And let's look for food too. You know, Nami was right, we seem to have no plans!"

The boat approaches the shore of the island. Luffy stands at the front, grinning widely, and declares, "We've reached the isolated island!" A large "DO----N" sound effect emphasizes their arrival. Luffy looks around the sandy beach and notes, "There's nothing here but forest!" Nami, standing behind him, says, "Like I said, this is an unpopulated island! It would be weird if you found someone for the crew here!" Luffy turns back towards the boat and calls out, "Hey! Zoro, come over here!" A large "DON!" sound effect fills the bottom panel as Luffy waits for Zoro.

Nami grabs Luffy by the collar and pulls him away from the boat, saying, "Let him sleep. He's still injured." Luffy protests, "Hey, you're sleeping!" as Zoro is shown fast asleep on the boat, snoring "ZZZ... ZZZ...". Luffy relents, saying, "You're right! Well, let's go!" Nami asks, "Go where?" Luffy points towards the trees and says, "Towards the forest! You never know, there might be people there!" Nami warns him, "There's no one here but poisonous snakes and wild animals!" As they walk into the forest, a strange "POCK POCK POCK..." sound is heard. Luffy says, "Um..?" and Nami says, "Huh?" They spot a bizarre animal walking past them with a "NOSHI NOSHI" sound effect. It looks like a fox but has a rooster's comb on its head and a feathered tail. Nami stares at it in confusion and asks, "What is that?"

Luffy holds up a strange snake that has long rabbit ears. He laughs and says, "Hey look!! What a weird rabbit!" Nami, looking unsettled, replies, "It's weird alright, but I think that it's a mutant snake." They then notice another bizarre creature walking by with a "SUTA SUTA" sound effect: a pig with a thick lion's mane. Nami asks, "How about that lion?" Luffy observes, "That.. that's a pig, isn't it? A weird mutant pig." Nami looks around the dense trees and says, "This forest... it's really weird!" Suddenly, a voice echoes from the trees, "Don't come closer! Get out!" Luffy says, "Huh?" and Nami asks, "What was that sound?" The voice demands, "Who are you?" and then declares, "Me? I am the forest guardian..."

Luffy questions the voice, "The forest guardian?" The voice responds, "That's right! If you still want to live, then leave at once! You are pirates, aren't you?" Luffy bluntly answers, "Yes!" Nami wonders aloud, "Why did he ask that?" The voice continues, "So you are pirates! Listen well, don't take a step further to the forest! Or else you will face... the forest judgement!" Luffy scoffs, "Who cares?!" Nami looks worried and asks, "What exactly is that...?" Luffy and Nami search for the source of the voice; Nami calls, "Where are you, come out!" and then notices, "Looks like the voice is coming from there!" Luffy walks forward with a "SUTA SUTA" sound effect and says, "What a weird guy!" The unseen voice snaps, "Hey, the brat with the straw-hat, what did you just say?" and then warns, "Hey! I told you not to come closer! Receive the forest judgement!" Luffy stops and says, "Huh?"

A loud "BANG!!" rings out as a gunshot hits Luffy squarely in the chest. Nami screams, "KYAAAA!!" in terror. The impact stretches Luffy's rubber body backward significantly, with a "GU!!" sound effect as he grunts, "UOH!!" His body then snaps back into place with a "BYONG!!" sound, and he exhales a sharp "HA!!" Nami stares in shock, speechless at first, then stammers, ".......!? Huh...? What a shock! That was a bullet, right? So... bullets don't hurt you!" Luffy, looking a bit frazzled, replies, "Yea, but that surprised me too!" The unseen voice stammers in disbelief, "What... what kind of a thing are you?" Luffy glares in the direction of the voice and retorts, "That's our line!"

Luffy and Nami look toward the source of the gunshot and see a treasure chest sitting on the ground, with a massive afro of hair sticking out of the top. Luffy points and says, "The bullet was fired from there!" Nami notices a gun lying on the ground nearby and says, "Look! There's a pistol!" Luffy asks, "What's this thing...?" Nami replies, "It doesn't look normal!" Suddenly, with a "DO-N" sound, the chest sprouts legs and starts running away with a "TAP TAP!!" sound effect. Nami exclaims, "Ah! It's moving!" The chest trips over a rock with a "TRIPPED" sound effect, and a voice from inside yells, "GAA!!" Luffy and Nami approach the fallen chest. Luffy looks closely and says, "Wow! It's a man!" The man in the chest demands, "Lift me up!" Nami observes, "What an interesting cauliflower head! Cauliflower man!" Luffy points out, "Why are you so angry? You tripped yourself..." while the man yells angrily, "Hey! Why don't you lift me up?"

Luffy and Nami sit on the ground near the man stuck in the chest. Luffy explains, "Gomu Gomu fruit... It's a 'Devil's Fruit' right?" Nami adds, "I have heard about that before..." The man in the chest says, "But it is the first time I have met someone who actually ate that kind of fruit." A caption box identifies him as "ISLAND RESIDENT GAIMON". Gaimon continues, "It's the first time I've met someone who's stuck in a treasure chest too." Luffy remarks, "You're like a son in a box." Gaimon replies nostalgically, "Yeah... my parents took care of me when I was still small..." Luffy yells, "Are you an idiot!?" Gaimon angrily explains, "I got stuck in here and I can't get out! I've lived on this island like this for 20 years already! Can't you understand what I've been going through?!?" Nami is shocked and asks, "What? 20 years? Lived on this island by yourself?" Gaimon confirms, "Yes.. 20 years..."

Luffy grabs Gaimon's massive afro and pulls on it, saying, "That's really stupid...!" Gaimon yells furiously, "What did you say? I'm gonna kill you!" Gaimon continues to lament, "20 years... what a long time! My hair and mustache have already grown this long, and even my eyebrows are connected..." A "PISSED!!" sound effect emphasizes his anger. Gaimon says, "I haven't talked to anybody for 20 years..." Luffy pulls harder on Gaimon's head, trying to yank him out of the chest. Gaimon screams in pain, "It hurts! It hurts! What the hell are you doing? Stop! Stop! My neck's gonna break!" Luffy struggles and asks, "Why can't I pull you out?" Gaimon yells, "You're crazy! I haven't moved in years. My body and this treasure chest have already become one! If you are going to forcefully pull me out, then my body will be done for!" Nami looks curious and asks, "But... how did you get to this island?"

Gaimon asks, "You mentioned earlier that you were pirates right?" Luffy confirms, "Yes, there are three of us." Gaimon reveals, "I was also once a pirate!" Luffy smiles and says, "Oh! It's nice being a pirate, venturing for treasures, it's even okay if I risk my life..." Gaimon then asks, "Do you have any maps?" Luffy holds up a rolled piece of paper and says, "We have a navigational map for the 'Grandline'!" Luffy grins widely and declares, "I'm going for 'One Piece'!" Gaimon looks shocked and exclaims, "What? 'One Piece'? And you intend to go to the 'Grand Line'?"

Gaimon looks confused and asks, "Um? Which one is the 'Grand Line'?" Luffy looks at him skeptically and says, "This... Uncle Cauliflower Head, you don't know?" Gaimon admits, "I don't really know how to read maps!" Luffy bursts into laughter, "Oh, I see! Is that how pirates are supposed to talk...?" with "HAHAHHAHA" sound effects. Nami unrolls the map with a "PA!" sound and says, "Listen! Do you know the 'Red Line'?" Gaimon replies, "I know! That's the land that separates the oceans." Nami points to the map, which shows the Red Line intersecting the Grand Line. She explains, "Yes! There are 2 oceans in this world! And the land that splits the world's two oceans is called the 'Red Land'!"

Nami continues explaining the map, pointing to the intersecting lines. "Using the city of 'Red Line' as the centre, draw a line around the world across the opposite way. And that is the 'Grand Line'!" She adds, "In history, only the Pirate King Gold Roger has conquered this route! Also, it is the most dangerous route!" Luffy grins and says, "'One Piece' is surely in that place! That means we need to sail around the world!" Gaimon scolds them, "Idiots! That place is not that easy to find! It also has another name... 'The Pirate's Graveyard'..." Gaimon looks serious as he recalls, "Long ago, I saw pirates......that returned from the 'Grand Line'..."

A flashback panel shows a group of battered, exhausted, and terrified pirates walking away from their damaged ship. Gaimon narrates, "Everyone of them had lost their spirit and looked as if they were dead. Their facial expressions were even more painful to look at... It looked like they had met something horrid, maybe a dreadful pirate or perhaps a monster." Back in the present, Gaimon continues, "Nobody dared to talk about it... You could see from their look, the horror of the 'Grand Line'!" He adds, "I have no other proof than this, the rumors only made it more and more mysterious! It's already been more than 20 years since the beginning of the Great Pirate Era... That treasure might be nothing more than legend."

Gaimon yells, "Can you see now? 'One Piece' is only a dream inside a dream." Luffy smiles and replies, "Is that so? I think that there is a better ending, right?" Gaimon argues, "If a person really found such a treasure, he wouldn't tell anybody! That is what a smart person would do!" Luffy confidently states, "I will surely find the treasure, because I'm always lucky!" Nami sighs and says, "I just can't understand where you get such confidence." Luffy laughs, "It's because I'm not mature!" Gaimon then says, "Now I will tell you, why I can't leave this island..." Luffy asks, "Oh! Why is that?" Gaimon admits, "I don't know how to adapt to the changes in situations!"

Luffy asks, "What?" Gaimon begins his story, "It happened 20 years ago, I was a pirate and the ship docked on this island... Because we found a map that said......that there was treasure on this island..." A flashback shows a pirate crew searching the island. Gaimon narrates, "We don't have to look for it anymore! 200 men searched this area and didn't find a thing in three weeks......except for this broken empty treasure chest!" The flashback shows a younger Gaimon, looking like a normal pirate without the chest, standing near his crewmates. One pirate calls out, "All aboard everyone! Hey Gaimon, what are you doing? We're gonna leave soon!" Gaimon replies, "Yeah! Okay!" A caption identifies him as "GAIMON (20 YEARS AGO)".

The flashback continues. Gaimon climbs a steep, rocky hill, panting "HUFF HUFF". He narrates, "We only searched around this area in these three weeks... But, nobody has ever climbed up there..." He reaches the top and looks over the edge. He says, "I couldn't believe what I saw with my own eyes..." At the top, he sees several treasure chests lined up. He exclaims, "It's here! I've found it!" In his excitement, he slips and falls backward off the cliff. He yells, "Hey, everybody... Way-aaaaa!" He plummets down and lands perfectly inside an empty treasure chest at the bottom. He narrates, "By the time I woke up, I was already stuck in this chest..."

The flashback shows Gaimon, now stuck in the chest, crawling desperately toward the shore with "SHA SHA" sound effects. He cries out, "AAAAAAA..." as he sees his pirate ship sailing away in the distance. He narrates, "I struggled, crawling to the shore, but my companions had left me. They... they left me behind." He tries to climb the rock hill again but fails, sliding down with a "KALA-" sound. He realizes, "Wait! That means that... this treasure is all mine! This is very good! I can't climb, unless I leave this chest... Lemme out! Lemme out!" He screams, "Everyone, come back!!" Back in the present, Luffy asks, "No one came to this island in the past 20 years?" Gaimon replies, "Yes! People came... There were many times... They were all pirates looking for the treasure, but I used the 'Forest Judgement' to scare them all away!"

Gaimon declares confidently, "My eyes were never wrong! I'm very sure that there's a lot of treasure in that large rock hill! But I've been stuck in this chest! I've only been able to protect the treasure these past 20 years! That treasure is all mine!" Luffy nods and says, "Uh! That's right! Those are yours, uncle!" Nami enthusiastically offers, "Okay! Gaimon-san!! We'll help you bring down those treasures!" Gaimon is touched and says, "What? Is that true? That's very nice! I knew I hadn't misjudged you!" Luffy looks at Nami and asks, "Aren't you a professional thief that steals treasure from pirates?" Nami yells back, "Don't speak nonsense! I have principles too!"

Luffy, Nami, and Gaimon stand before the massive, steep rock hill. A large "DO---N" sound effect emphasizes its size. Gaimon says, "This is it... It's been a long time... Since the last time I came here." Luffy asks, "But why haven't you asked anyone to help you before?" Gaimon explains, "Because I don't trust anybody! And anyone who sees me like this wouldn't believe me anyway. Damn! Damn! The treasure is just up there, but I... I've waited for this moment so long, today is the happiest day of my life!"

Nami encourages Luffy, "Okay... Go for it!" Luffy asks, "You want me to go up there?" Nami replies, "Of course! Do you think that I can climb this?" Gaimon adds, "I'm counting on you, Straw-hat kid!" Luffy agrees, "Okay..." Luffy stretches his arms high up the rock face with a "STREEETCH" sound effect, grabbing the top edge. Gaimon watches in awe, exclaiming, "OOHHH!!" Luffy then launches himself upward with a "BASHYU!" sound effect, flying toward the top of the hill. Nami watches him go and says, "Wow!!"

Luffy reaches the top of the rock hill and sits among the treasure chests. He calls down, "There really are some treasure chests up here! There are five of them!" Gaimon is overjoyed and yells, "That's great!! Quick! Drop them here! Wahahahahaha! But don't hit me!" Luffy sits quietly for a moment, his eyes shadowed by his hat. Then, he firmly states, "No way!" Gaimon is shocked and asks, "What?" Nami yells up at him angrily, "What the hell are you talking about? Stop joking around, and drop the treasure chests, now!"

Nami yells up at Luffy, "Hurry up and drop them to me!" Luffy answers from the top of the rock, "I don't wanna do that!" and then says, "Don't you dare come down here again! Forget about it! It's okay if he doesn't want to drop them here!" Gaimon, looking confused and desperate, says, "How can that be okay? That's your treasure!" Gaimon looks up at Luffy and realizes something, saying softly, "Straw-hat kid... You... You are a good person..." Nami is confused and asks, "What!? What are you saying!?" Gaimon explains, "Actually.. I've thought about it before... It might be a possibility... But, I always try hard not to think about it..."

Tears stream down Gaimon's face as he cries with "SOB SOB..." sound effects. He says, "The treasure chests... are empty, aren't they?" Nami gasps in shock, "Ah!!" A view from the top of the hill shows the five treasure chests lying open and completely empty. Gaimon continues, "They're all empty! The treasure in the map, actually did exist... But, by the time we found the map, the treasure had already been taken by other people..."

Nami looks sympathetic and says, "How can that be... the treasure you guarded for 20 years... is just a bunch of empty chests!" Luffy suddenly bursts into loud laughter, "Wahahahahahahahahaha!" Gaimon looks up, surprised. Luffy smiles broadly and says, "Don't be so disappointed, uncle! You meeting us after these 20 years is a really good thing too! 'Cause if it had been 30 years, you might've already be dead!" Gaimon mutters, "Straw-hat kid..." Luffy then offers, "Don't worry, there is still the great treasure 'One Piece' waiting for us! Will you join us, uncle?" Gaimon is stunned and asks, "You...... You...... You're inviting me?"

Luffy asks, "Uncle... Are you sure, you're really going to stay on this island?" Gaimon replies, "Yes!! Thank you for inviting me... But I still want to be the 'Forest Guardian'." Luffy asks, "Why?" Gaimon explains, "Because there are many rare animals in this forest... You're right! We saw a strange snake and pig! There were many people who came to this island to get those animals, and living here for 20 years made me grown to love those animals. I can't leave them behind!"

Luffy teases Gaimon, "You're a rare and precious animal too, uncle!" Gaimon yells back, "I'm gonna kill you!" He then smiles and says, "Now that there are no more treasures, I feel somewhat relieved, I can now live in this island more comfortably." Luffy grins and says, "It's too bad, you are an interesting person, uncle!" Gaimon encourages him, "I'm sure you'll find good companions for your crew! And also find the 'One Piece', then buy the whole world!" Luffy confidently replies, "That's right! I can do it! See ya!" The final panel shows Luffy and Nami's boat sailing away from the island. Gaimon and the weird animals watch them leave from the shore. A caption reads, "After leaving Gaimon-san, the boats sail towards the 'Grand Line' once again."

No description for this page.