(A/N Hello everyone! This is my first oneshot, it's on how if Luffy didn't pass out after Ace's death. It's a bit short but I hope you enjoy it, R&R please!)
Disclaimer-I don't own One Piece ^~^
All he saw was red. The anger...it was too much. His blood felt hot in his veins, he could feel his heartbeat resonating throughout his entire body. This man...was he even qualified to be called a man with all the things he'd done?
Luffy's dull eyes flickered to the motionless body next to him. The man's lips were curled upwards in a ghost of a smile, a large hole was in the center of his back, this man had no pulse. This man was Portgas D. Ace, his brother. Akainu towered over him his fist dripping with magma. The Admiral glared at Ace to make sure he wasn't getting back up then looked at him.
"You will die next, Son of Dragon," The Admiral growled as he brought his fist back and prepared to strike.
As he sat there he felt his consciousness going in and out. But he fought the numbness. No matter how weak he was, it didn't matter if he didn't have any strength left he would avenge Ace! Luffy shakily raised a hand and curled it into a fist. He faintly heard Akainu scoff, the Admiral said a few words about his attempts being futile but he wasn't paying attention. He was in the mood to fight not talk.
There was a flash of red as Akainu's fist zoomed forward, then all he felt was hot pain as it connected with his fist. The smell of burning rubber filled his nostrils as the magma covered his hand but he didn't pull away, instead he pushed. He gained some ground as he shoved foward. While doing so he screamed, "Akainuuuu!"
"Luffy-kun! Move your hand! It'll burn off!"
His ears picked up a frantic voice and his eyes flickered over to see Jinbe sprinting in his direction. Akainu took advantage of the distraction and landed a hit on his jaw, sending him flying to the earth.
"Never take your eyes off your opponent Son of Dragon." Akainu said emotionlessly.
His muscles strained as he pushed himself back up, wiping the burning magma he'd taken from the blow from his face with a finger. It'll take a lot out of me, but I have to use it. Once he'd gotten onto his feet he called out, "Second Gear!" Immediately the signature steam rolled off his skin and his skin turned got a shiny look to it. Luffy sucked in a breath as a wave of exhaustion hit him, but to counterattack that he still had all that rage and adrenaline. He stretched his hands behind him and shouted out the move, "Gomu Gomu no Bazooka!" His arms snapped forward palms facing forward. Akainu merely smirked and coated his chest with magma. Luffy grimaced but increased his attacking speed. As his attack hit Akainu he heard a satisfying grunt of pain coming from the bastard. Not letting him catch his breath he began to run forward hands curled into fists and ready to strike when Jinbe suddenly jumped in front of him.
He glared up at the fishman who refused to move, "Jinbe! Move! I have to fight him!" He shouted angrily.
Jinbe folded his arms and stiffly shook his head, "Luffy, if you continue this you'll die. I think it's time to get you out of here."
The thumping in his ears got louder, "What do you mean, 'get me out of here?' I'm doing fine! I'm gonna beat that bastard and-and…" His sentence trailed off as a wave of dizziness hit him.
"See? It's your adrenaline. Once it wears off you'll feel everything." Luffy looked down at his hand, sadly Jinbe was right. His hand was shaking badly. But I have to avenge him.
"Move aside Jinbe." He growled. He stepped past Jinbe who was too taken aback by his tone to do anything. By now, Akainu had gotten up and was slowly walking towards them, cracking his knuckles as he walked.
"Not trying to escape are we?" The magma user asked. Luffy didn't reply. For he was still in Second Gear he flashed forward and managed to land a hit on the side of Akainu's head. Either it was he wasn't ready or he let him, Luffy saw there wasn't any form of luck in this battle. The Admiral chuckled and looked at him through cold eyes, "You're getting slow, Son of Dragon."
Luffy froze as Akainu disappeared, his stomach twisted into knots as he wildly looked around for his opponent. "Luffy-kun! Behind you!" Jinbe shouted. But it was too late. Time seemed to slow as he twisted his head around, Akainu had reappeared behind him and was swinging a magma fist in his direction. He wouldn't have time to dodge. Luffy watched with wide eyes as the fist was centimeters away from his skin, then something strange happened.
Firstly, all the hairs on his arms stood up. Then the clouds above lit up with a blinding light and a earsplitting crack echoed throughout the battlefield. The sounds of fighting ceased as everyone tried to figure what was happening. The dust soon settled and murmurs spread around the many groups; lightning had split the earth. Some believed this was a signal someone powerful was arriving, and that was right.
"Sir! It's the Red Hair pirates!" A marine shouted out to another nearby Admiral.
"Red Hair…" Akainu muttered.
A weak smile grew on his face and he whispered in relief, "Shanks is here!" Thankfully when the lightning had struck it separated him and Akainu, saving him from that fist. Jinbe had ended up on the same side of him. The fishman ran up to him and said,
"This is our time to get out of here! Come on Luffy-kun!" He jerked his arm away when Jinbe when to grab for it.
"I told you already. I'm not leaving until I defeat Akainu."
Footsteps crunched rubble behind him and a clear voice spoke out, the battlefield was silent as everyone was straining to hear, "If you keep on fighting, both sides will suffer more pointless casualties. If anybody wants to fight...then come! We will be your opponent's!" Luffy recognized the voice of Shanks right away. His turned to see him standing in front of his crew sword drawn. The people surrounding shifted uneasily and murmured. "What do you say, Teach? No, Blackbeard!" Shanks' tone had gotten even more serious if that was possible. Luffy turned to see the Shichibukai, Blackbeard grinning at Shanks.
"Zehahaha, You're looking more handsome than ever Red Hair. That scar suits you nicely." He had met this guy back in Jaya, he seemed a bit off then but now, he knows he's just an asshole. Shanks' crew raised their guns at this.
"Everybody, please respect what I have to say." He turned his attention back to Shanks, his interest piqued. "Whitebeard. Ace. Please leave their burial to us." His brows furrowed in many emotions, but he did feel a great deal of respect for this man. "This war was broadcast all over the world. Don't exploit their deaths more than you already have!"
His lip quivered and he said, "Shanks…"
Sengoku spoke up, "I'm fine with entrusting them to you, Red Hair."
"But sir!" A soldier protested.
"I will take the blame!" Sengoku announced, his lips pressed tight together.
"Sorry about this," Shanks said.
He watched as Sengoku straightened his back and then started to give out orders, "Tend to the wounds of the fallen! This war...is over!" ...Over? The marines mouths drifted open for they were unsure of what to do, until everyone cheered at once.
As Jinbe had said, once the adrenaline wears off the exhaustion will hit you. Now that the battle had been declared over, he felt like he had been hit by a train. By then again that wouldn't affect him, and that would also be putting it lightly. His head was pounding, both with pain and emotions. And that magma bastard was still alive! His hands curled into fists and he glared at the earth, he could feel his back shaking. If Akainu so much as looks at him, he couldn't guarantee if he could stop himself from attacking him. "Hey Anchor," A soft voice pulled him from his thoughts.
Luffy's eyes flickered up to see Shanks standing beside him. All he could manage was a half-smile without his face hurting again, "Shanks! Thanks for all the help you-" A strong hand was laid on his head and pushed him forward. His stiffened, expecting it to be another attack, but it was the opposite of what he expected it to be. Shanks had pulled his head into his shoulder, the red-haired captain didn't mind that Luffy couldn't breath from his face being smushed into the man's cape.
"Luffy, you should know that by experiencing both victory and defeat, running away and shedding tears, a man will become a man. It's okay to cry, but you have to move on." With this sentence, it took a few seconds for it to click. Then he felt the pressure building up behind his eyes and soon he was sniffling rather loudly. When he couldn't hold it in any longer he flung his head up and let loose a loud sob. Hot tears trailed down his face and dripped onto the earth. His breaths were ragged as his breathing became uneven.
"Son of Dragon, if you don't leave now I'm taking you into custody. It doesn't matter if you're acquainted with Red Hair or not." In his grief he slowly lifted his head to find Akainu giving him a glare. In his hands were a pair of Sea Prism Stone cuffs ready to be used. Seeing that man renewed his anger, but at this point he was too weak to fight. Luffy wiped away his tears and got ready in case he had to fight.
Shanks grimaced and took a step forward so that he was between him and Akainu. "He's leaving, with me. I suggest you back off, I didn't know if you heard or not but the war has ended."
Akainu raised his head in annoyance. "Fine. We'll meet again in the future, Son of Dragon, and next time you won't be so lucky." The Admiral growled and stalked away.
Shanks turned to face him with a smile, "Looks like you better leave, I think I saw Jinbe heading over to shore, we'll come with you so nothing happens." He gave Shanks a thankful nod and was about to step forward when he realized something.
"My hat!" He exclaimed feeling around his neck for the familiar strap.
"Don't need to worry about it, I ran into Buggy-I'm pretty sure you guys have crossed paths-and I told him to look for it. You should have it before you leave."
He, Shanks' and his crew reached the shore where they found Jinbe pacing. Upon their arrival the fishman looked up and gazed upon the group for a second before running over and giving him a tight hug. "You had me worried Luffy-kun!"
"Sorry…"
Jinbe gave a toothy smile, "It's alright, Buggy stopped by already and dropped off your hat, it's waiting inside."
"Great!" He said in relief. Luffy began to head towards the ship of the Heart Pirates-more like submarine-when he paused, thinking of something. "Shanks! Do you want your hat back?"
Shanks gave him a grin, "I think you can hold onto it for a bit longer!"
He nodded, "Thanks! You know Shanks? I'm gonna train and get stronger so that I can protect my nakama!"
"I believe you can Luffy!" Shanks called back, "I look forward to see what kind of trouble you cause next time!"
"Bye Shanks!" He shouted. As the crew slowly got smaller something seemed to feel missing. But, he would get stronger. I'm sorry everyone but, we'll just have to wait until we can meet up. I need some time. Get stronger, nakama.