Enter the Great Swordsman! Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro!

Luffy and Coby arrive at a place with a large Marine base, where Luffy discovers the swordsman, Roronoa Zoro tied to a pole. Rika, a young girl, offers Zoro some rice balls that she made herself. Helmeppo, the son of Marine Captain Morgan, discovers this and has Rika thrown out. Luffy asks Zoro to join his crew, but Zoro refuses and has Luffy give him the rice balls. Luffy and Coby meet Rika in town, who is happy to hear that Zoro enjoyed the rice balls. She tells them how Helmeppo brought his vicious pet dog into their bar and that Zoro knocked it out to protect everyone inside. He then made a deal with Helmeppo: if he can survive being tied to a pole with no food or water for thirty days, then Helmeppo will spare the little girl and her mother. However, Helmeppo says that he will execute Zoro the next day despite his word. Luffy punches him, and Helmeppo runs off to tell his father. While Luffy invades the Navy base to find Zoro's swords, Coby attempts to untie Zoro and explains the situation to him. Morgan orders that they are both to be executed. The soldiers open fire, but before the bullets can reach them, Luffy leaps from the base and uses his rubber body to block the bullets.