The streets of Konoha glowed under the gentle warmth of the setting sun. Lanterns flickered to life, and paper streamers danced in the breeze, casting playful shadows across tiled rooftops. Children laughed as they ran between vendor stalls, and the scent of dumplings, grilled fish, and cinnamon buns blended into a comforting aroma that hung over the village like a well-worn blanket.
Today was no ordinary day.
Today was the graduation exam.
"Your dad's treating us, right?" Shikamaru asked, yawning lazily as he strolled beside Choji.
"Yeah," Choji grinned, patting his belly with satisfaction. "Barbecue for the whole clan. Ino's folks are joining too."
"Troublesome," Shikamaru muttered—but Choji knew him well enough to hear the fondness buried beneath the drawl.
They pushed open the doors of the Akimichi family's favorite restaurant, and were instantly greeted by a wall of warmth and roasted meat. The back room was full of boisterous family and familiar voices. Plates clattered. Grills hissed. Laughter swirled like steam.
Choji's father waved them over with a grease-slicked smile, cheeks already stuffed. Ino sat beside her parents, poised and radiant as always, offering a small, polite wave.
"Congratulations, Choji," her mother said with genuine warmth.
"Thanks!" Choji replied, already eyeing the beef ribs being slid onto the grill.
They sat. They ate. The meat was perfect, the laughter even better. For a while, everything felt right.
But somewhere, just under the laughter and familiar comfort… something felt off. Choji laughed when expected, ate heartily, and nodded at the right moments, but a thread inside him tugged loose, unraveling quietly.
He didn't stay long after everyone left. Shikamaru muttered something about checking in with his dad and wandered off. Ino said her farewells with that same polite tone—kind, but distant.
Choji's walk home was quiet, the streets emptier now, bathed in silvery moonlight. The breeze was soft. Peaceful. But his mind stirred like leaves in a storm. He chalked it up to nerves. Or maybe the meat sweats.
He greeted his parents, climbed into bed, and turned toward the wall.
Sleep came quickly.
But what followed wasn't a dream.
He was standing on a crowded street under flickering neon lights. The cold wind of a city evening brushed past his face. Across the road, his friends waved from the window of a ramen shop, all smiles and jokes.
"Come on, Aron! You're always late!"
He laughed and jogged toward them. "Yeah, yeah, I'm coming!"
Then—
A step missed. A slip.
Concrete. A stairwell.
Impact.
Pain. Cold. A final breath that never reached his lips.
Then, darkness.
He gasped—and the world changed.
Now he stood on the deck of the Thousand Sunny, the sea stretching into a blue eternity. Wind whipped through his hair. Salt filled his lungs. And in his hands—his treasure—the Straw Hat.
"I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!"
He remembered it all. The adventures. The unshakable bond with his crew. The Straw Hat Pirates: Zoro's loyalty, Sanji's passion, Nami's fire, Usopp's courage, Robin's calm, Brook's laughter, Franky's madness, Jinbe's honor, Chopper's innocence.
He remembered fighting gods. Liberating nations. Punching celestial dragons. Laughing through pain. Protecting everything he held dear.
Gear Second. Gear Fourth. Gear Five—freedom unbound.
He remembered his final breath as Luffy—surrounded by his nakama, no regrets, only joy.
But no one held his hand. Not even her.
"I had the world. I had adventure. But I never had love—not that kind. I never let myself."
Choji woke up with a start, his breath catching in his throat.
His room. His bed. The Akimichi crest still hanging crookedly on the wall. But inside, his soul burned like wildfire.
"I was… Aron," he whispered, the name foreign and familiar at once. "Then I was Luffy."
His chest ached—not physically, but somewhere deeper. "And now I'm Choji."
He stumbled to his window, pressing a trembling palm to the cool glass. The village slept peacefully below. Families in warm homes. Lovers curled together. Friends laughing over drinks.
"Who… the hell am I now?" he breathed.
"Aron, the student who never made it to dinner?""Luffy, who laughed his way into legend but died single?""Or Choji… who no one even sees?"
His voice broke on the last word. His fists clenched at his sides. The memories rushed in again—eating meat with Zoro,laughing with Usopp,fighting side by side with Ace,sailing into the sunset with everything but love.
"I remember it all. I shouldn't. But I do."
He still felt the pull of the Gum-Gum Fruit in his bones. The pressure of Haki rising in his arms. The rhythm of battle, the heartbeat of adventure.
And the ache.
"I was a college kid.""Then I was a pirate god.""Now I'm… a chubby side character."
A pause. Then a dry laugh escaped his lips.
"…What the hell, man."
He wiped his face, fingers shaking.
"I didn't ask for this. I didn't even remember it as Luffy. But now—now I do."
"I died twice… single. Never loved. Not really."
He just… understood now.
He had been oblivious. Not cruel. Not uncaring. Just a boy chasing freedom so fast, so hard, that he never paused to see what was right in front of him. If he had truly noticed—really felt Hancock's love—maybe things would've been different.
But he didn't.
He had never experienced love like that. Never let himself.
"I had my crew. My nakama. I died smiling, surrounded by them... but I never gave anyone my heart."
And that, somehow, stung the most.
This time—this life—had to be different.
"I don't want to die again like that," he muttered.
Not just without a lover.
But without truly being seen.
He wasn't thinking of anyone specific. He didn't even want love right now. He just wanted the chance—to connect, to be known, to give his heart to someone who might hold it carefully.
And this time… he'd recognize it.
But he wouldn't chase it blindly.
Not yet.
He needed to rebuild himself. To become whole.
First, he needed to figure out who he was now.
He turned from the window, eyes glinting with determination.
"…Let's see. I was King of the Pirates last."
He took a breath and grinned.
"What should I be this time?"
The universe didn't answer.
But he already knew.
He looked at his hands—soft, clumsy, round. Not yet strong. But they would be.
"I'm Choji Akimichi. And I'm not gonna be a side character anymore."
He let the words settle. No theatrics. No screaming to the sky.
Just a quiet, soul-deep decision.
Tomorrow, the world would still see the same goofy, food-loving kid.
But Choji?
He knew better now.
And he knew exactly who he was going to become.