I do not own One Piece.
Getting back on the Moby Dick, I sigh loudly before Marco and I make our way to Pops' chair, where the rest of the crew has already gathered. "I take it the Straw Hats will be joining us?" Pops asks us as we come to stand next to him with the rest of the commanders.
"Yeah, he claims to have a right to fight and won't listen to a word I say," I grumble, pouting slightly. Pops lets out a loud laugh, as some of the others snicker quietly, before nodding his head and turning back to face everyone else.
"As long as he doesn't get in anyone's way, there shouldn't be a problem." he laughs out before addressing everyone, "We need a few people to stay on the ship to make sure no one tries to attack Thatch while he is still unconscious." There was a few seconds of discussion throughout the crowd before everyone nods their heads. "Good, we will be landing within the next couple of hours, everyone go and prepare yourselves." I grab Marco's hand and we head to our room.
"Are you ready, Ace? You seem kinda nervous." Marco points out as we lounge on our bed. I sigh slightly, rolling over to face him.
"I wish Luffy wasn't here. He is so reckless and never thinks about the danger of any situation." I confess, biting my lip and idly moving my fingers over Marco's arm.
"That's one thing he takes after you, huh?" Marco asks, laughing lightly. "Your brother is strong, Ace. He wouldn't have made it this far, or have such a high bounty if he wasn't. He doesn't need you to worry about him anymore than you need him to worry about you."
"I guess you're right," I say with a sigh. "I just don't want anything to happen to him, you know?"
"I know, Ace. But it would be like me trying to stop you from fighting just because you don't like to think things through…Now, how about we finish getting ready and you go can over to his ship and stay there until we land." I nod my head in agreement, stand up and strap my dagger in. I kiss Marco goodbye and head over to Luffy's ship, wanting to spend some time there but planning on getting back on Moby Dick before we began the attack.
"Ace! I'm not turning back. I'm fighting too." Luffy yells as soon as I step foot on the ship.
"I know, Lu. There is no way to stop you. Just be careful, alright Luffy?" I say, taking a seat on a nearby barrel. Luffy nods his head excitedly, sitting down in front of me. "We have no idea how many people are going to be there…and the guy who kept Usopp and I captive may be there as well," I say, smiling sadly at Usopp, who flinched at the news. Others sent him sad looks as well, so I guess he had informed them of all that had happened. "They don't care to fight dirty, which I'm sure you all know…so just watch yourselves….and do not rush in there alone, these are strong people. We want the least amount of injuries as possible. So, prepare yourselves, we will be starting in less than an hour," I inform them, before jumping back over to the Moby Dick.
I make my way through the crowd and stop beside Marco. I grab his hand, as we stare out towards the sea and cannon fire begins. I watch emotionlessly as their ship sinks, not liking the fact that no one was returning fire and that there is still no one on the beach. That could only mean one of two things; they either weren't here or they were hiding in the forest with the hopes of an ambush.
"Stick together and stay alert," Whitebeard tells us calmly as we get close enough to the island to debark. Jumping off of the ship we all begin slowly and cautiously making our way into the forest. As we reach the edge, a loud shout sounds behind us, causing us all to start and quickly turn around. I stare wide-eyed as I watch Luffy, yelling and laughing loudly, disappear into the forest, alone. Cursing softly, I take off running after him, ignoring the shouts from Marco telling me to stay put.