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Chapter Four
If Kaido had appeared before him at that moment, Shanks could have cheerfully wrung the other Yonko's neck. As it was, it would probably be a long time before the King of Beasts bothered him or Whitebeard again. That didn't matter though, the damage had been done.
There was no way the Red Force was getting to Marineford in time to make a difference. At this point, Shanks could only pray his contingency plans had borne fruit. His gaze flicked to the large array he had ordered his cartographer to painstakingly copy onto the deck. It remained stubbornly inert.
The pirate hadn't heard a whisper from his Father since he had left five days before and to be honest, he was starting to feel a little worried. His head told him he was being ridiculous. Naruto was ever young, had a fighting style only his son and Mihawk understood how worked, the demonic chakra that ran through the blonde's body could heal otherwise mortal wounds in seconds, and if he had any secret weaknesses they had long since been swallowed by the sands of time. Shanks heart on the other hand, could only whisper that dreaded question; what if?
"What is taking them so long?" Shanks whispered to himself.
Almost in response to the man's question, the sealing array flared up. Burning red and bursting into a pillar of fire, the flames coalescing into a single figure that let out a startled shout before dropping gracelessly to the deck. Ace groaned, his eyes snapping open at the feel of well sanded decking beneath his fingers. What the hell?
The mera mera user scrambled to his feet only to pause at the sight of the man in front of him. "Shanks?" the name was said uncertainly as though Ace could not quite believe his eyes.
A sigh of relief left the redhead's lips. That was one, and even if his Father had yet to arrive, safety was now only a handseal away. "Someone get me a den den mushi," he ordered.
Ace still hadn't quite recovered his equilibrium when the snail like creature was shoved into his hands.
"Call Whitebeard."
The younger pirate just stared. "What?"
"Your crew is mounting an attack on Marineford at this very moment," Shanks said urgently. "Now call him." He took a moment to regret he hadn't informed the other Yonko of his plans but it couldn't be helped. He could only hope the Whitebeard Pirates and their allies were still outside the harbor.
Dark eyes went wide, fingers shaking as he dialed a number only known to Pops' most trusted.
'Hello.'
'Rick.' It took all of Ace's self-control not to crush the speaker in his hand. Why? His inner voice cried. Why were they doing this? If any of his brothers had been harmed he would never be able to forgive himself. Didn't they know he wasn't worth it?
From the other end of the line came the clatter of falling objects as the pirate jumped to his feet. 'Ace! Ace is that you!' Rick slammed the door open running out onto the deck and dragging the den den mushi behind him, completely ignoring the tense confrontation going on between his captain and one of the eleven supernova.
"Pops! Pops! It's Ace." Rick wasn't quite sure what happened after that. One moment he was running and next he was flat on his back, staring at the sky.
'Ace!' Luffy screamed. 'You're all right!'
Fire-Fist blinked. 'Luffy?' he asked. 'What are you doing on our ship?'
'Don't be stupid! I came to rescue you,' his voice rose. 'Are you okay? Are you safe?' before he could continue his a tirade another person intervened.
Whitebeard stood with his hand outstretched. "The den den mushi Strawhat."
For a moment it seemed like Luffy was going to refuse. Then, he stepped forward, placing the device in the Yonko's hands. "You're his captain," he muttered. Nakama, and nakama meant family.
'Ace.'
The younger man felt his shoulders relax as a heap of tension he hadn't even realized he was carrying around dissipated it the sound of his captain's voice. It wasn't to last, the feeling returning tenfold as he remembered why he called. 'My brothers! You have to call them back . . .'
'Calm down my son.' Whitebeard ordered. 'Marco is handling it as we speak.' His first commander was also spreading the word among their allies, the pirate fleet turning away from Marineford. The Yonko allowed himself an amused grin at the thought of what the admirals were thinking before deciding he didn't really care.
A sigh of relief left Ace's lips. Thank god his brothers were safe, and speaking of brothers. 'Hey Pops, what's Luffy doing on the Moby Dick?'
'Gurararara. He came to save you. Even broke into Impel down.' It really was a pity the leader of the Strawhat Pirates wasn't willing to be one of his sons. The brat had spunk.
Impel Down. Ace could not help but stare at the dial in his hand as though it had betrayed him. His precious little brother had gone to IMPEL DOWN. Anything could have happened to him! Luffy could have been caught. He could have been killed.
'Ace.'
There was no response.
'Ace.' Now Whitebeard was starting to sound concerned.
Gently Shanks removed the den den mushi from stiff fingers, raising it to his own mouth. 'Portgas D. Ace isn't available right now. But if you would care to leave a message he will get back to you as soon as possible.'
Pale eyes blinked. Red-hair? Well, he supposed that partially explained how his baka son had gotten out of Marine Headquarters. 'It would seem Shanks,' Whitebeard said evenly, using the other Yonko's real name for once. 'That I am in your debt.'
Shanks laughed. 'I can only take part credit. Besides,' he added. 'Ace has many friends. You owe me nothing.' Rival Crew or not, the captain of the Red Hair Pirates did not play with the lives of those he cared for.
There was a beat of silence before Whitebeard spoke again, his voice soft. 'How is he?'
'Better than I was expecting. A few solid meals and some rest and Ace will be as good as new.' Shanks could only presume the government had wanted the younger man in good condition for his execution. After all, he thought cynically. Mustn't let the masses know how the oh so righteous marines really treated their prisoners.
'We can rendezvous on Fishman Island unless you'd rather meet somewhere else,' the redhead added after a moment. 'And I am sure your son would appreciate it if you dragged his little brother along.' Luffy had potential, but Shanks of all people was all too aware of the kind of trouble anchor could get himself into, and he did not want the younger pirate anywhere near Marine Headquarters, especially not without the rest of the Strawhats.
'Agreed. See you there.'
Bonus Scene
Sengoku frowned out at the ocean, brow furrowing in consternation. What on earth? The pirate fleet was pulling away, turning one by one to vanish back into the mist. The idea that Whitebeard would abandon one of his sons was laughable, and it was inconceivable that the Yonko's allies would come all this way just to give up at the final hour.
"Sengoku-sama!" The double doors burst open; a pale faced marine stumbling through. "Portagas D. Ace has escaped. When we went to collect him we found out the guards weren't the guards, and then they disappeared, the real guards were in the cell," he added belatedly. "But Fire-fist wasn't." The frazzled man took a deep breath, only to snap his mouth shut at the look on the Fleet Admiral's Face.
"Gone," the zoan repeated dryly looking at the departing pirate fleet with new eyes. Garp's laughter did not help his mood at all. Sengoku's fists clenched. Who could have done this? More importantly how had they managed to use their abilities? It had to have been another devil fruit user and there was enough seastone in the upper levels, above where the prisoners were kept, to prevent anyone from sneaking by.
A flash of bright color caught his eye, Sengoku using haki to focus in on the figure. Almost immediately he wished he hadn't. The man let out a string of vicious curses. "Damn it all to hell."
Aokiji rose from his seat, gaze focused on the distant figure. "Is that . . ."
"It is," Kizaru chimed in. "Mo, what an unexpected turn of events."
Naruto just waved cheerfully. "Hiya Sen-chan."
The Fleet Admiral twitched at the sound of the old, much hated nickname. Why?! His inner voice cried in despair. Why couldn't he just have stayed dead?
As for Akainu, the third Admiral did not waste any time with words. Instead, he launched himself at the outlaw, outstretched hand covered in lava. For a moment it seemed as though he had succeeded.
Naruto looked up from where the fist had punched through his midsection. Then, he smirked, the shadow clone vanishing as though it had never been. "Over here guys." The blond grinned. "I did think about just leaving, but that would be an awfully boring end for my first appearance in decades."
Oh shit. Sengoku had just enough time to compute the outlaw's position relative to the docked marine fleet before Naruto moved. Of course, by then it was far too late.
"Rasenshuriken" The glowing blade of chakra tore through the ships, leaving nothing but some scattered sawdust in its wake. Naruto smirked, oh yeah. Chaos, confusion, his work here was done.
HYBHYBHYB
Hope the dialogue was alright
Usually I like to interspace it with action but that was difficult considering they are basically
Talking over the phone. Will try to get the next chapter up soonish.
I got a new job so have been super busy.
